Niger’s junta said it regained control of key Niamey sites after mutinous soldiers attacked, including the presidential palace, triggering heavy gunfire.
A diplomatic source told AFP that the presidential guard, with help from Russian forces, had retaken control of a key military air base from the mutinous soldiers. The source added that several of the rebelling soldiers had been killed.
Clashes began in the early hours of Saturday morning. Soldiers blocked access to the presidential palace and national television, and state broadcaster Tele Sahel went off air for just over an hour before being restored around 10:00 am (0900 GMT).
“There was an attempt by insurgents from the Nigerien armed forces to enter the presidential palace,” a security source told AFP, adding that “they were pushed back by the presidential guard.”
Niger’s Defence Minister, General Salifou Mody, said in a statement read on state television that a group of soldiers had held some troops hostage at a barracks in Niamey and opened fire at “certain sensitive sites” in the city, without naming them.
“The prompt reaction of the defence and security forces made it possible to contain this heated moment and they gradually took back control of these sites,” he added.
Mody’s statement called on the people to “remain calm and freely go about their business.”
An African diplomat in Niamey said the presidential guard was still loyal to ruler General Abdourahamane Tiani.
A resident of the Yantala district, close to the presidential palace, said late Saturday morning that “everything is calm again, we can’t hear any more shooting.”
The military issued a statement on its social media pages urging people to stay calm and “avoid sharing unverified information,” saying, “Our defence and security forces have been mobilised for the defence of the homeland.”
Witnesses reported heavy gunfire and explosions at Base 101 in Niamey. The first shots were heard at about 1:00 am local time and continued until daybreak, according to a video published by a local journalist.
Another resident reported hearing “bursts of gunfire” at about 7:00 am, adding that the weapons heard “are not the kind that terrorists on motorbikes can carry.” Videos online showed armoured vehicles deployed to reinforce the neighbourhood near the airport.
Niamey airport has been targeted twice this year by jihadist groups: first by the Islamic State in the Sahel (EIS) in January, then in late June by its rival, the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), the Sahel branch of Al-Qaeda.
Authorities said at the time that twenty assailants were killed and four soldiers wounded in the January assault.
Source: allAfrica.com