Omodou Mahamadou, the ousted Prime Minister of Niger, told Reuters that he still clings to hope, albeit slim, that diplomacy will succeed in ending the military coup that took place in his country recently, on the eve of the expiration of the deadline set by forces in the region to restore the elected government to power.
And the sacked prime minister, during an interview in Paris, expressed his belief that a solution could be found at the last minute, despite the approaching deadline.
“We remain hopeful,” said Omodou Mahamadou, who was in Rome when the coup took place. “We expect President Bazoum to be released, reinstated and all institutions allegedly dissolved completely.”
France said on Saturday that it would support efforts to thwart the military coup in Niger, without specifying whether this support would include support for the ECOWAS military intervention.
But the coup leader, General Abdelrahman Tiane, 59, who received some of his military training in France, said the military council would not back down.
Muhammadu said he was in contact with Bazoum, but wondered how the ousted president would be treated.
“His condition is good as a political prisoner… (but) he is being held without water or electricity,” he added, suggesting that ECOWAS’ intervention might be the only way to change that.
“The security of the president is up to ECOWAS,” he said.
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2023-08-05 22:44:06
