(23 Dec 2023)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Niamey, Niger - 22 December 2023
1. Various of French soldiers walking on airport tarmac
2. French soldiers ready to board military aircraft
HEADLINE: France completes withdrawal of troops from Niger
ANNOTATION: Years of of on-the-ground military support by France ended after Niger's new junta asked for a full withdrawal by December 22.
3. Various of French and Niger military officers signing document
ANNOTATION: The junta severed ties with Paris after the military coup in July - France announced it was closing its diplomatic mission for “an indefinite period.”
4. Various of military personnel next to plane preparing for departure
5. French soldiers boarding plane
6. Various of military aircraft leaving airport
ANNOTATION: Around 1,500 French troops were providing military support and training to Niger, in order to use it as a base for regional counter-terror operations.
ANNOTATION: France will still be involved in the Sahel, but in a different capacity, according to President Emmanuel Macron.
7. French forces with Nigerien military officers
ANNOTATION: While Niger's junta has described the end of the military cooperation as the start of “a new era” - analysts fear it may lead to a regional power vacuum.
STORYLINE:
France completed the withdrawal of its troops from Niger on Friday after it was asked to leave by the new junta, ending years of on-the-ground military support and raising concerns from analysts about a gap in the fight against jihadi violence across the Sahel region of Africa.
The last French military aircraft and troops departed Niger by the December 22 deadline set by the junta which severed ties with Paris after the coup in July, the French Army General Staff told The Associated Press by email.
France already announced this week that it would close its diplomatic mission in Niger for “an indefinite period.”
However, the country would continue to be involved in the Sahel — the vast expanse south of the Sahara Desert which has been a hot spot for violent extremism — although differently, President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday during a visit to a base in Jordan.
Niger's junta described the end of the military cooperation with France as the start of “a new era” for Nigeriens.
But analysts say a vacuum will be created by the troops' departure.
Some 1,500 French troops were training and supporting the local military in Niger, which had been envisioned as the base for counterterrorism operations in the region after anti-French sentiment grew in Mali and Burkina Faso, both run by juntas that have also forced French troops out.
But after deposing Niger’s democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum, the nation's junta led by Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani severed military relations with France and other European countries.
Instead, he sought defense cooperation with Russia, whose private mercenary Wagner Group is already active in parts of Africa but faces an uncertain future there following the death of its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin.
The junta in Niger has formed a security alliance with the military governments in Mali and Burkina Faso to coordinate counterterrorism operations across the Sahel.
However, much of the immediate impact of the departure of French troops would be felt in western Niger’s Tillabéri region which has been the hot spot for extremism in the country, said Ryan with Signal Risk consulting.
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