France: The first trip of military planes carrying mostly European nationals evacuated from Niger safely arrived at Paris and Rome airports. Following last week’s coup, France and other countries are preparing to conduct further evacuation operations to bring their citizens out of the West African country.
Niger’s President, Mr. Mohamed Bazoum, and his government were removed by members of his presidential guard on 26th July 2023. This was the seventh military takeover in less than three years in West and Central Africa. The countries, including France, Italy, and Spain, said they would evacuate citizens by air amid the escalating conflict.
The first French flight departed Niger on 1st August 2023 evening and landed in Paris early on 2nd August 2023, carrying 262 individuals on board.
“Things could have turned ugly, but it still is nice to be back here. We will see how things evolve over there in the coming days and weeks. For us, who care about it quite a lot, we will follow this closely,” a French evacuee stated.
According to the reports, France is planning to evacuate more people from Niger in the coming days. The recent coups in the region have come amid a wave of rising anti-French sentiment that resulted in the withdrawal of French troops from Mali and Burkina Faso this year and last, as per the statement.
Currently, many soldiers from France are stationed in Niger. Additionally, the United States, Germany, and Italy also have troops in Niger for counterinsurgency and training missions. As of now, there have been no announcements of troops being evacuated from the country.
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