Posted on Aug 2, 2023
Foreign nationals are evacuating Niger as regional tensions rise
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https://www.npr.org/2023/08/02/ [login to see] /foreign-nationals-are-evacuating-niger-as-regional-tensions-rise
Foreign nationals lined up outside an airport in Niger's capital Wednesday morning waiting for a third evacuation flight, while a regional bloc continued to talks about its response to the coup that took place last week.
French forces in the capital, Niamey, evacuated hundreds of mostly French nationals to Paris on two flights Tuesday, following concerns that their citizens and other Europeans risked becoming trapped by last week's military coup, which ousted and detained President Mohamed Bazoum.
France, Italy and Spain all announced evacuations for their citizens and other Europeans. The United States has yet to announce plans for an evacuation, however some have left the with the help of the Europeans.
Foreign nationals lined up outside an airport in Niger's capital Wednesday morning waiting for a third evacuation flight, while a regional bloc continued to talks about its response to the coup that took place last week.
French forces in the capital, Niamey, evacuated hundreds of mostly French nationals to Paris on two flights Tuesday, following concerns that their citizens and other Europeans risked becoming trapped by last week's military coup, which ousted and detained President Mohamed Bazoum.
France, Italy and Spain all announced evacuations for their citizens and other Europeans. The United States has yet to announce plans for an evacuation, however some have left the with the help of the Europeans.
Foreign nationals are evacuating Niger as regional tensions rise
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Posted 10 mo ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."ECOWAS is resolved to use military force after economic and travel sanctions have failed to roll back other coups, said a Western diplomat in Niamey who did not want to be identified for security reasons.
Niamey has calmed after protests supporting the junta turned violent Sunday when demonstrators attacked the French embassy and set fire to a door.
But some say the mood is still tense. During Tuesday's evacuation flights at the airport, a passenger who did not want to be named for security reasons said that the Nigerien military, which was escorting an Italian military convoy into the airport, sped off with soldiers who raised their middle fingers at the passengers.
That same night, the M62 Movement, an activist group that has organized pro-Russia and anti-French protests, called for residents in Niamey to mobilize and block the airport until foreign military forces leave the country.
"Any evacuation of Europeans (should be) conditional on the immediate departure of foreign military forces," Mahaman Sanoussi, the national coordinator for the group, said in a statement."
..."ECOWAS is resolved to use military force after economic and travel sanctions have failed to roll back other coups, said a Western diplomat in Niamey who did not want to be identified for security reasons.
Niamey has calmed after protests supporting the junta turned violent Sunday when demonstrators attacked the French embassy and set fire to a door.
But some say the mood is still tense. During Tuesday's evacuation flights at the airport, a passenger who did not want to be named for security reasons said that the Nigerien military, which was escorting an Italian military convoy into the airport, sped off with soldiers who raised their middle fingers at the passengers.
That same night, the M62 Movement, an activist group that has organized pro-Russia and anti-French protests, called for residents in Niamey to mobilize and block the airport until foreign military forces leave the country.
"Any evacuation of Europeans (should be) conditional on the immediate departure of foreign military forces," Mahaman Sanoussi, the national coordinator for the group, said in a statement."
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