The Niger Coup and its Impact Across the World

On July 26, 2023, Niger’s presidential guard detained sitting president Mohamed Bazoum in Niamey, the capital city of Niger and officially conducted a coup d’etat. Led by Brigadier General Abdourahmane Tchiani, troops closed the country’s borders and issued a curfew for Niger’s residents.

The coup was immediately condemned by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), by the African Union, The European Union, France and the United States. Niger is the fourth country in the Sahel region of Africa to have experienced a coup joining Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mali. The new government issued a statement saying that it would stop allowing France to take advantage of Niger’s resources, most notably their Uranium. Tchiani’s new government revoked all military cooperation with France, making their 1,500 troops leave the region.

Black August is a time when we study global movements of Black liberation past and present and what’s currently happening in Niger is no different. Black Men Build proudly stands in solidarity with our comrades in Niger and in our Black August Mass Call we hosted Kambale Musavuli (Center for Research on the Congo-Kinshasa) and Eugene Puryear (BT Newsroom) to provide more context on what’s happening in Niger and its impact across the diaspora.

Later in the call, we were honored to be joined by Elder Jalil Muntaqim (Black Panther Party and Black Liberation Army) and he weighed in with additional context about what’s happening in Niger, how it relates to our struggle in the States and what’s needed in this moment to continue to fight the impact of imperialism across the globe.