President Bola Tinubu has approved the return of a delegation of Islamic leaders (Ulama) to Niger Republic for another round of dialogue with the coup leaders. Tinubu made the decision on Thursday after a meeting with the top clerics led by Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi who were recently in Niamey, the Niger Republic capital, two weeks ago for dialogue with the junta led by General Abdourahamane Tiani.
Channels Television report that, Tinubu made the decision in his capacity as the Chairperson of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Since President Mohamed Bazoum was overthrown by the junta on July 26, 2023, ECOWAS has sanctioned Niger in retaliation for the coup and hasn’t ruled out employing force against the army leaders.
The West African bloc is dedicated to seeking a diplomatic solution to the issue, but has approved the quick deployment of a “standby force to restore constitutional order” in Niger. Abdulsalami Abubakar, a former head of state of Nigeria and ECOWAS representative to the Niger Republic, reported that his delegation’s meeting with the coup leaders last weekend was productive upon his return from the nation.
Channels Television report that, He claimed that diplomacy would succeed in restoring President Mohamed Bazoum’s democratically elected government.
Although ECOWAS opposed the proposal, Tiani had stated that the junta would return to civilian power within three years.
Due to the current issue, the African Union had suspended Niger Republic.
International concern for the Sahel, which is experiencing escalating jihadist insurgencies linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State organisation, has increased as a result of the coup.
Niger, after Burkina Faso, Guinea, and Mali, is the fourth country in West Africa to experience a coup since 2020.
Any military intervention in a neighbouring country would be viewed as a “declaration of war” against Burkina Faso and Mali, according to their respective juntas.
Since the impoverished landlocked nation of Niger obtained independence from France in 1960, there have been five coup attempts.
The election of Bazoum in 2021 marked a turning point and paved the stage for the first peaceful transfer of power in the nation.
Since the coup, he has been kept in custody with his family at the president’s official mansion, where there is growing concern around the world about his treatment.
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