Niger coup: First evacuation flights reach Europe

The first French evacuation flight out of Niger arrived in Paris early on Wednesday morning.

France sent three planes to Niamey to evacuate French and European citizens in the wake of a coup last week that toppled pro-Western leader Mohamed Bazoum.

According to French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, the first flight with over 260 individuals left the capital, Niamey late on Tuesday. 

"Considering the ongoing coup in Niger and the fact that the situation continues to be worrying, we decided to make sure that the French citizens who want to leave Niger can do so," Colonna said. 

France is expected to operate more evacuation flights on Wednesday.

Hundreds of people were gathered at Niamey airport Wednesday morning hoping to catch an evacuation flight, the Associated Press (AP) news agency reported.

The Foreign Ministry said that most of the passengers were French citizens, and that there were also citizens of Niger, Portugal, Belgium, Ethiopia and Lebanon on board.

Italy, Spain carry out evacuation flights

The Italian military sent an evacuation flight carrying 87 people that arrived in Rome early Wednesday morning. 

Around 36 Italians, 21 US citizens, four Bulgarians, two Austrians and one citizen each from Britain, Niger, Hungary, Senegal, and Nigeria were on the plane, as well as military personnel, Reuters news agency reported. Antonio Tajani said that there are almost 100 Italians in Niger.

Spain's Defense Ministry has also announced preparations to evacuate more than 70 nationals.

Germans evacuate with French mission

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Wednesday that 40 German nationals were flown out of Niger Tuesday and Wednesday with "the help of our French friends." She added that there would be more flights leaving later Wednesday. 

Germany has advised citizens to leave Niger, asking them to board flights along with French nationals from Niamey.

"The top priority for the federal government at this time is, of course, the safety of German nationals in the country. As in previous crises, we are coordinating closely with France and our other European partners in this regard," Baerbock said Tuesday in a statement.

Junta reopens land borders

The military junta announced the reopening of Niger's borders with its five neighbors overnight.

"The land and air borders with Algeria, Burkina Faso, Mali, Libya and Chad are re-opened from today, August 1, 2023," Colonel Amadou Abdramane, spokesperson for the junta, said in a televised address.

The land borders were closed last Wednesday when the military removed the democratically elected president.

France warns against attacks on citizens

There are about 500 French nationals in Niger and around 1,500 French troops in the country.

French troops have been present in Niger for a decade to fight against surging Islamist insurgencies in the Sahel. Niger had been one of the last democracies in the fraught region.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday vowed "immediate and uncompromising" action if French citizens or interests were attacked, after thousands rallied outside the French embassy in Niamey.

Niger gained independence from France in 1960 and has seen several coups — both successful and unsuccessful. 

Tense political climate in Niger 

In 2019, Bazoum was elected president in Niger's first peaceful transfer of power since it gained independence.

He was removed from power after being detained by members of his own presidential guard last week.

General Abdourahmane Tchiani, who staged the coup, then declared himself as head of the state, drawing condemnation from former colonial power France, the EU and the US.

The fight for power has created a tense political climate in Niger, with supporters of the junta burning French flags and attacking the French embassy in capital Niamey over the weekend.

French President Emmanuel Macron issued a statement saying any attacks on the institutions of the French state in Niger would be met with a "swift and uncompromising response."

A coalition of West African nations, ECOWAS, has threatened military intervention if Bazoum was not reinstated by August 6.

Neighboring Burkina Faso and Mali, also ruled by militant governments, have thrown their support behind the coup leaders.

Both of those countries ordered the departure of French troops and have also moved closer to working with Russia's Wagner mercenary group. 

rm/wmr,lo (AFP, dpa, Reuters)