LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Following the threat of the West African leaders to launch a military invasion of the Sahel nation if the Niger coup leaders failed to reestablish democracy and the ousted leader to his position.
The National Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, the Christian Association of Nigeria, the Arewa Consultative Forum, the Northern Elders Forum, the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, and others have all argued that any military action in Niger could have consequences for Nigeria because it is the country’s closest neighbour while also supporting diplomacy as a means of resolving the conflict there.
Algeria’s president, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, has dispatched his foreign minister, Ahmed Attaf, to Ghana, Nigeria, and the Benin Republic in an effort to find a solution.
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The foreign minister, who started the trip on Tuesday, will hold discussions with his ECOWAS country counterparts and make the case for diplomacy over military action.
A military solution, according to Tebboune, would pose “a direct threat” to his country in North Africa, and Algeria, which shares a land border with Niger for 1,000 kilometres (600 miles), had previously issued a warning against it.
There won’t be a solution without us (Algeria),” he declared. We are the initial group impacted.
Algeria also borders Mali and Libya, both of which are embroiled in protracted wars. Niger, after Burkina Faso, Guinea, and Mali, is the fourth country in West Africa to experience a coup since 2020.
Any military action against one of their neighbours would be regarded as a “declaration of war” on Burkina Faso or Mali, according to the juntas in those countries.