(VOVWORLD) - West African nations on Friday worked on plans for a possible military intervention in Niger following an army coup there although they have not given up hope of a peaceful resolution to a crisis that has shaken the region.
 West African leaders gather for the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Head of States and Government meeting in Nigeria on August 10, 2023. (Photo: Reuters) |
The Nigerien military ousted former President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, the seventh coup in West and Central Africa in three years.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)ordered the activation of a standby force on Thursday for possible use against the new junta, saying all options including military action were on the table.
ECOWAS, the United Nations and Western countries are putting pressure on the junta to stand down, while military governments in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso have said they will defend it.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday after a summit of its heads of state in the Nigerian capital Abuja, Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara said he considered the detention of Bazoum “a terrorist act” and promised to supply a battalion of troops to the force.