The country will not submit to threats, no matter where they come from, the junta’s president has said
Supporters of Niger’s ruling junta gathered in the capital, Niamey, on Thursday to protest sanctions imposed on the country in the aftermath of last week’s coup, as well as to oppose foreign meddling.
The mass rally is taking place as the country marks 63 years of independence, in response to a joint call by junta leader General Abdourahamane Tiani and a coalition of civil society groups.
One participant was reportedly seen carrying a sign that read “Long live Niger, Russia, Mali, and Burkina Faso. Down with France, ECOWAS, and the EU.”
“We are going to do a demonstration [against] all the countries of ECOWAS and all who are taking inhumane and unpopular measures toward Niger,” one of the protesters was quoted by Reuters as saying.
A protester told Al Jazeera that Niger’s main priority was security, regardless of whether it is provided by “Russia, China, or Turkey.”
Tiani, the former head of Niger’s presidential guard, masterminded the country’s June 26 coup and has since detained President Mohamed Bazoum in the presidential palace.
US President Joe Biden called for Bazoum’s immediate release on Thursday, the first time the American leader has spoken out about the situation in Niger.
