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00:00 I'm joined now by Catherine Norris-Trent on set and it's, as I said there, Independence Day in Niger.
00:05 What are we seeing with these demonstrations right now?
00:08 Yeah, there were lots of pictures coming out, largely on social media, of huge crowds of largely young men
00:14 gathering in the centre of Niamey to celebrate Independence Day,
00:19 independence from France in 1960, which was the colonial power.
00:23 And of course there are celebrations every year, but this year they've got a very particular tone to them.
00:27 There have been chants of support for the coup leaders, chants saying 'Down with Eco-was'
00:34 and chants saying 'France, get out'.
00:36 And people have had T-shirts handed out or printed up with the head of the coup leader,
00:42 General Abdur Rahman Chani, on them.
00:45 So clearly they're rallying people in support of that coup.
00:49 As the evacuations now have wrapped up, France has said that it has finished all its evacuation flights
00:56 from Niamey for its citizens who wanted to leave, some of them have chosen to stay,
01:02 and also evacuated people of other nationalities, European nationalities, British and American,
01:07 Indian as well, people who wanted to leave because the airspace is still closed for international flights
01:13 and this was the way people wanted to get out, fearing insecurity.
01:17 We saw at a demonstration last Sunday that the French embassy was attacked.
01:21 So a lot of uncertainty still in Niger.
01:24 And that uncertainty being fuelled by a deadline on Sunday.
01:28 Eco-was says that if constitutional order is not restored, there will be a military intervention.
01:34 Absolutely. So there is this looming deadline, as you say, of Sunday,
01:38 because last Sunday Eco-was, the regional bloc, the economic community of West African states,
01:43 called for the reinstatement of the ousted President Mohamed Bazoum and said that
01:47 if that didn't happen within a week, that they could face consequences,
01:53 that the coup leaders could face consequences, including perhaps putting military intervention on the table.
01:59 So this is fuelling tensions at the moment.
02:02 There's been no sign that the coup leaders want to give in to the pressure that's being put on them there.
02:07 The coup leaders, the second in command and a delegation has been flying to neighbouring countries of Mali
02:14 and Burkina Faso to meet with coup leaders there who've said that any military intervention
02:19 they would see also as a declaration of war against Mali and Burkina Faso as well.
02:23 So that could have huge implications for the whole region.
02:28 The leader of the Putsch has taken to television in Niger to condemn already sanctions that have been imposed by Eco-was
02:37 and he has described them as inhuman. We can take a listen to those now.
02:42 The National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland rejects these sanctions in their entirety
02:50 and refuses to give in to any pressure from any quarter.
02:54 We reject any interference in the internal affairs of Niger and reject the claim by some and others
03:02 to punish the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Homeland and the people of Niger as an example.
03:10 So the leader of the Junta there in Niger remaining firm on the surface at least.
03:17 And there is speculation about Eco-was whether they could even be in a position to launch some kind of military intervention
03:23 or whether perhaps they're bluffing in this.
03:26 Nigeria has taken over the presidency. They're the dominant force in Eco-was and in the region.
03:30 So there's a lot remains to be seen whether this is like a kind of playing poker in this region.
03:37 Trying to be firm. Will they actually follow out with that threat? Will it come to that?
03:41 Thank you so much. Catherine Norris-Trent there giving us an update on the situation,
03:46 an unfolding crisis with Niger and the Sahel region.