Leaders of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have deployed coalition troops to the Republic of Niger with the charge to restore constitutional order following a coup.
President of ECOWAS, Omar Alieu Touray, ordered the immediate invasion of Niger during a meeting of the organisation on Thursday, August 10, 2023.
The Second Extraordinary Summit on the socio-political situation in Niger held in Abuja, Nigeria’s opened today [Thursday].
Touray said; “We direct the committee of defence staff to activate the ECOWAS standby force with all its elements immediately to restore constitutional order in the Republic of Niger.”
Attendees at the summit include Presidents of Guinea Bissau, Senegal, Cote ‘d’ Ivoire, Ghana, Benin, Sierra Leone, and Togo, while Liberia and the Gambia were represented by their Foreign Ministers.
The approval for military intervention comes amid widespread warning that an invasion could plunge sub-Sahara Africa into crisis.