Niamey, September 1
On Saturday, following nearly 24 hours of unrest, dozens of soldiers in Niger’s capital, Niamey, were arrested or killed after attempting a mutiny at a key military base located within the city’s main airport and near the presidential palace. The revolt was reportedly led by young soldiers angered by worsening militant violence under the country’s current government. Russia’s Africa Corps provided aerial and ground support to loyalist forces in suppressing the rebellion, according to analysts and diplomats.
State broadcaster RTN aired footage showing dozens of mostly young soldiers being paraded in public after sustained gunfire and explosions were heard overnight into Saturday. The whereabouts of military leader Abdourahamane Tchiani were unclear during the incident.
Senior Nigerien military officers visited the Africa Corps base at the airport and expressed gratitude to its personnel for their assistance in quelling the uprising, as quoted by Russian media from Moscow’s Ambassador to Niger, Viktor Voropayev. Analysts and diplomats reported that loyalist forces had regained the ‘upper hand at least at the airport and base,’ according to Wassim Nasr, a senior research fellow at the Soufan Center. However, some forces were still moving toward the capital, and it remained uncertain whether they were supporting the mutiny or the government.
Once order was restored, hundreds of people gathered in Niamey to show support for the country’s leader, Abdourahmane Tiani. Ibrahim Boubacar, head of a pro-government association, stated that they do not accept attempts by ill-intentioned individuals to destabilize the nation or undermine its emancipatory process, noting that external enemies previously driven out have vowed to take measures to create divisions.
Tiani came to power in a 2023 coup, which he said was prompted by the elected government’s failure to stem jihadist violence. Since then, Niger has severed ties with longtime Western security partners and turned to Russia for security cooperation. Despite this shift, militant violence and killings of security forces have continued, reportedly fueling unrest within the military.
Some of the mutinous soldiers originated from the southwest of Niger, a region among the worst-affected by insecurity, as reported by diplomats and analysts.
