Senegal to partake in ECOWAS' threatened intervention against Niger

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
3 Aug 2023 17:51

Senegalese Foreign Minister Aissata Tall Sall announces that Senegal would deploy soldiers to Niger if ECOWAS proceeds with a military intervention to reinstate ousted President Mohamed Bazoum.

ECOWAS leaders pose for a group photograph after a meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, July 30, 2023 (AP)

Senegalese Foreign Minister, Aissata Tall Sall, announced on Thursday during a press conference that Senegal would be sending soldiers to Niger if ECOWAS decides to go through with a military intervention.

The West-backed regional bloc, ECOWAS, which Senegal is part of, has threatened to intervene militarily in Niger if former President Mohamed Bazoum is not reinstated by Sunday.

The Foreign Minister cited Senegal's international commitments as a pretext for joining a military campaign against Niger.

When asked about the purpose of such military intervention in Niger, the Minister said it is "to give a simple answer, because it is one coup too many."

"Senegal's conviction is that these coups must be stopped -- that's why we are going there."

"Senegalese soldiers, for all these reasons, will go there," she said.

On July 26, the Nigerien presidential guard overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum. The guard's commander, Abdourahmane Tchiani, proclaimed himself the country's new leader.

On Sunday, ECOWAS gave Niger's coup leaders one week to reinstate Bazoum or threatened to use "all measures", including military, to restore order in the African nation.

Moreover, ECOWAS suspended all financial aid to Niger, froze the assets of the coup leaders, their families, and supporters, and imposed a ban on commercial flights to and from the country.

Yesterday, military chiefs of the Economic Community of West African States met to discuss options for military intervention in Niger. The extraordinary meeting is set to last until Friday. The goal of the meeting reportedly is to outline a plan for the intervention, its strategy, logistical aspects, and timetable.

Today, in a press release, an ECOWAS official announced that "(The) military option is the very last option on the table, the last resort, but we have to prepare for the eventuality."

Correspondingly, military leaders in Niger have warned against any armed intervention in their country, stressing that they will "resolutely defend their homeland."

The interim governments of Mali and Burkina Faso warned that any military intervention against Niger would be considered a declaration of war against them.

Originally the ECOWAS bloc consisted of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cote d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.

But many countries have witnessed coups causing them to defect from the Western-sponsored bloc, the latest of which is Niger.