Nigeria again demands the release of Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum
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Nigeria on Friday again demanded the release of Mohamed Bazoum, the Nigerien president held by the junta since his overthrow in a 2023 military coup.
"We want him released. We believe he has committed no crime," Nigerian Information Minister Mohammed Idris said in an interview with France24 television.
Mr. Bazoum was ousted on July 26, 2023, after only two years in office, by the head of his presidential guard, General Abdourahamane Tiani, who accused him of failing to protect the country against jihadist attacks.
Since then, he has been detained with his wife Hadiza at the presidential palace in Niamey under strict detention conditions.
"We will continue to insist that he be freed," said Mr. Idris, whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
"It is undeniable that none of the members of ECOWAS are happy to have seen Bazoum overthrown by the military," he added.
In February, the UN called the couple's detention "arbitrary" and called for their immediate release.
Lawyers representing the former Nigerien leader said earlier this year that the couple had no outside contact, including with family, friends, and lawyers, after their phones were confiscated in October 2023.
Last week, the Nigerien junta announced that it had released around fifty people, including former ministers from the government it overthrew.
This decision to release him is in line with "the recommendations of the national conference on reconstruction" held in February, the military said.
Since taking power, Niger's military rulers have severed relations with France and expelled French and American soldiers engaged in the fight against jihadists.
Niger also left ECOWAS and moved closer to its two neighbors, Burkina Faso and Mali, both governed by military forces and also facing deadly jihadist attacks.
Together they formed the Alliance of Sahel States (ESA) and moved closer to Russia.