ECOWAS deadline to reinstate ousted Niger’s president expired this Sunday

Niger’s capital was peaceful on Sunday as West Africa’s regional bloc’s ultimatum for coup leaders to reinstate the president expired.

ECOWAS is expected to make a statement this Sunday about the bloc’s next plan of action.

The junta, which refused to resign after the July 26 power grab, had garnered support, and thousands gathered in the country’s capital, Niamey.

The western Sahel, one of the world’s poorest regions, has strategic importance for Russia, China, and the West due to Niger’s significant uranium and oil deposits.

Over 100 people protested outside an air base in Niamey on Saturday evening, playing military music and blowing vuvuzela horns.

On July 30, ECOWAS defence chiefs decided when and where to strike if jailed President Mohamed Bazoum was not released and reinstalled by Sunday.

ECOWAS declined to comment on its next moves after the deadline expires on Sunday. A spokeswoman said it would release a statement at night.

On the picket line, where organizers led cries of “Vive Niger,” much of the fury appeared focused against ECOWAS and former colonial power France, which announced on Saturday it would back regional efforts to overthrow the coup, without specifying if that included military assistance.

The bloc’s military vow has raised concerns about more violence in a region already fighting a deadly Islamist insurgency that has killed thousands and displaced millions.

Mali’s and Burkina Faso’s juntas have pledged to defend Niger if ECOWAS intervenes.

Bazoum’s Prime Minister Ouhoumoudou Mahamadou said Saturday in Paris that the deposed leadership still felt a last-minute solution was feasible.

Italy lowered its personnel ranks in Niger on Sunday to create a place in its military base for Italians who may need protection if security deteriorates.