In an attack near the Mali border today, Wednesday, 17 soldiers were killed and 20 others were injured, according to the Niger Ministry of Defense. The people of the capital, Niamey, have also started a campaign to find volunteers to defend their nation should it come under military attack.
“A squad of the Nigerien armed forces, which was moving between Boni and Torodi, fell victim to a terrorist ambush on the outskirts of the town of Kotogo,” the ministry stated in a statement.
Six of the wounded troops had significant injuries, bringing the overall “non-final toll” for the soldiers to 17 killed and 20 wounded, she said, adding that “all of them were evacuated to Niamey.”
This development comes at a time when the meeting of the Chiefs of Staff of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is expected to be held tomorrow and the day after tomorrow in the Ghanaian capital to discuss the situation in Niger.
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From Niamey, Al-Jazeera correspondent Zainab Bint Arbih said that the conditions of the military council for negotiation are respect for the country’s sovereignty, which observers considered a positive point on the eve of the crucial meeting of ECOWAS in Ghana, pending its decisions.
The meeting takes place a week after ECOWAS decided to deploy a reserve force to reinstate detained President Mohamed Bazoum. The group confirmed its desire to exhaust the diplomatic track before any military action.
Remarks of the President of Nigeria
Earlier, Nigerian President Paula Tinubu said that ECOWAS is not working to complicate the problem, and understands the people’s fear of military action, stressing work to keep the sanctions against Niger in effect, provided that they are implemented literally.
Tinubu stressed that the ECOWAS group does not accept any attempt by Niger’s military junta to intimidate and harass the detained president (Bazoum).
Meanwhile, Muhammad al-Amin Zain (the prime minister appointed by the coup leaders) renewed the ruling authorities’ openness to dialogue with all parties, while emphasizing the independence of his country.
Zain added – during a visit to Chad – that his country should negotiate with partners who understand Niger’s sovereignty.