On Friday, military rulers who took over in Niamey on July 26 have given the French ambassador 48 hours to leave Niger. France says that the Niger coup leaders lack the authority to instruct the ambassador to leave.
France on Friday said Niger’s “putschists have no authority” to expel its ambassador in Niamey, after the country’s new military rulers gave their envoy 48 hours to quit the country.
“We are constantly evaluating the security and operating conditions of our embassy,” the ministry added.
This decision follows a series of statements and demonstrations hostile toward France since the Nigerien army overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum, who has since been detained with his family.
The military leaders accuse Paris of wanting to intervene militarily in Niger in order to reinstate Bazoum and claim that the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is an organization in the pocket of former regional colonial power France.
ECOWAS has imposed heavy economic sanctions on Niger following the coup and has threatened the use of armed force to restore constitutional order.
France has some 1,500 troops stationed in Niger to aid in fighting jihadist groups that have plagued the country along with the wider Sahel region for years.
Katrine Dige Houmøller, with AFP
