Niger’s Coup Leaders Say They Will Prosecute President Bazoum, Freezing Out France

Niger’s mutinous soldiers say they will prosecute the country’s deposed president, Mohamed Bazoum, for “high treason” and undermining state security, in an announcement hours after the junta said it was open to dialogue with West African nations to resolve the mounting regional crisis.If found guilty, Mr. Bazoum could face the death penalty, according to Niger’s penal code.A spokesman for the junta, Colonel Major Amadou Abdramane, said on state television Sunday night the military regime had “gathered the necessary evidence to prosecute before competent national and international authorities the ousted president and his local and foreign accomplices for high treason and for undermining the internal and external security of Niger.”The surprise announcement gave no precise details on the allegations nor the circumstances or date of a trial. It also threw a monkey wrench into French efforts to see Mr. Bazoum reinstated. While there was no immediate response from President Macron, Paris has been at odds with Washington in its approach to the crisis. France, the former colonial power in Niger, has withheld enthusiasm for the decision of America’s deputy secretary of state, Victoria Nuland, to meet with the coup leaders last week. Although that rendezvous appeared to be frustrating and fruitless, it rankled diplomats at the Quai d’Orsay, one of whom told Le Figaro that for Mr. Macron, “the credibility of France is on the line” while “for the Americans, even if they want a rapid restoration of the constitutional order, the priority is regional stability.”Niger’s democratically elected president, Mr. Bazoum was ousted by members of his presidential guard on July 26 and has since been under house arrest with his wife and son in the presidential compound at the capital, Niamey.People close to the president as well as those in his ruling party say the family’s electricity and water have been cut off and they’re running out of food. The junta dismissed these reports Sunday night and accused West African politicians and international partners of fueling a disinformation campaign to discredit the junta.International pressure is growing on the junta to release and reinstate Mr. Bazoum. Immediately after the coup, the West African regional bloc Ecowas gave the regime seven days to return him to power or threatened military force, but that deadline came and went with no action from either side.Last week, Ecowas ordered the deployment of a “standby” force, but it’s unclear when or if it would enter the country. The African Union Peace and Security Council is meeting on Monday to discuss the Niger crisis and could overrule the decision if it felt that wider peace and security on the continent was threatened by an intervention.As time drags on there’s growing uncertainty as mixed messages mount.On Sunday evening, before the military accused Mr. Bazoum of treason, a member of the junta’s communication team told journalists that the regime had approved talks with Ecowas, which would take place in the coming days. That same day a mediation team of Islamic scholars from neighboring Nigeria, who had met with the junta during the weekend, said the regime was open to dialogue with Ecowas.Previous attempts by Ecowas to speak with the junta have floundered, with its delegations being barred from entering the country. The newfound openness to talks could be a result of Ecowas pressure, including severe economic and travel sanctions, which are already taking a toll on the impoverished country’s some 25 million people, but it doesn’t mean they’ll go anywhere, analysts say.“Let’s see what these negotiations actually look like, because it’s also in the junta’s benefit to in the least entertain talks, that doesn’t mean they’ll be serious about them,” a former U.S. State Department official who specialized in African affairs, Aneliese Bernard, said. She is now director of a risk advisory group, Strategic Stabilization Advisors.While talk of dialogue ensues, so is military mobilization. In a memo from Senegal’s security forces dated August 11, seen by the Associated Press, troops were ordered to start moving from bases in Senegal on Monday as part of its contribution to the Ecowas mission in Niger. It was unclear how many troops would move or where they were going.In the weeks since the coup, the junta has entrenched itself in power, appointing a new government and leveraging anti-French sentiment against its former colonial ruler to shore up support among the population, creating a tense environment for locals who oppose the junta as well as many foreigners and journalists.France has nearly 1,500 military personnel stationed in Niger. The current American military mission in the landlocked West African country includes two bases and about 1,100 troops. A small American military presence in Niger started after the September 11, 2001, terror attacks but was expanded in 2013 under President Obama. Niger became independent from France in August 1960.

Niger’s Coup Leaders Say They Will Prosecute President Bazoum, Freezing Out France

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