Niger soldiers overthrow President Mohamed Bazouw

Niger president, Mohamed Bazouw has been ousted by army officers led by Colonel-Major Amadou Abdramane on Wednesday, July 26, 2023, in a bloodless coup.

This comes after presidential guards in Niamey barricaded the entrance to the State House, holding President Bazouw inside the Presidential Palace in the early hours of Wednesday.

Following the reports of President Bazouw’s detention by members of the elite unit, a group of demonstrators took to the street to protest. The presidential guards later dispersed them.

However, later in the day,  mutinous soldiers announced that they had seized power and dissolved the constitution in a national TV address. The soldiers further said they had ordered a 7 pm- 5 am nationwide curfew, suspended all institutions and closed borders until further notice.  

Ousted President Bazouw was elected in 2021, making his election the first democratic transition of power after four military coups since independence in 1960.

In light of this, world leaders have reacted and have condemned the coup. Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, leader of ECOWAS, said that Benin’s President Patrice Talon would be travelling to Niger on a mediation mission to restore constitutional order.