Nigerien coup d'état

Niger's airspace has been closed since Sunday, the day imposed as a deadline by a group of African countries for the leaders of Niger's military coup to relinquish power and restore the country's democratically elected president, CNN reported.

Niger closed its airspace due to the "threat of intervention" as the junta defied a deadline from the West African bloc ECOWAS to reinstate democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum or face possible military action.

ECOWAS issued its ultimatum a week ago, demanding the generals relinquish power by midnight Sunday (2300 GMT).

The military that overthrew the legal authority in Niger has requested help from the Russian private military company "Wagner" on the eve of an expected West African military intervention to restore constitutional order, writes "Associated Press".

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US is suspending some aid programs to the government of Niger after the military coup there 10 days ago. The exception is the delivery of humanitarian aid and primarily food products.

Niger's ousted leader called on the US and "the entire international community" to help "restore ... constitutional order" after last week's coup, the BBC reported.

In an op-ed in the Washington Post, President Mohamed Bazoum said he was writing "as a hostage."

After his ouster, unrest broke out in the West African country.

Hundreds of foreign nationals have already been evacuated from the country, and on Sunday, protesters attacked the French embassy.
The leader of the coup, General Abdulrahman Chiani, warned against "any interference in the internal affairs" of the country.

The United States has confirmed that it has ordered the evacuation of some staff and families from its embassy in Niger, less than a day after first reports that Washington was preparing the move.

The United States on Wednesday ordered a partial evacuation of its embassy in Niger, the State Department said, a week after the fragile nation was rocked by a coup.

"On August 2, 2023, the Department ordered the departure of non-emergency U.S. government employees and eligible family members from Embassy Niamey," an updated US travel advisory for Niger said.