Niger: UN Agencies, NGOs Banned From Working in Operation Zones | News

On Thursday, Niger’s Interior Ministry stated that UN agencies and non-governmental organizations have been barred from working in military “operation zones.”

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Without specifying the affected regions, the ministry broadcasted the statement on national radio which read: “Due to the current security situation and operational commitment of the Nigerien armed forces, the ministry informs international organizations, national and international NGOs and UN agencies present in Niger that all activities and or movements in the zones of operations are temporarily suspended.”

Niger has been, in some of its border areas, suffering atrocities of terrorist organizations including armed groups and criminals who have controlled the southern region of Libya since the overthrow of the Muammar Gaddafi regime in 2011.

There are also terrorist groups based in northern Mali.

In recent years, a new center of insecurity has emerged in the extreme southwest of Niger, a region known as the “three borders” (Niger-Mali-Burkina Faso) where terrorist groups often carry out deadly attacks targeting both military and civilian population. 

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu proposed that the neighboring state of Niger can transition back to democracy for a period of nine months, similar to the nine-month period through which his country was in the late 1990s.

Sanctions were imposed on Niger by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) after President Mohamed Bazoum was ousted in a coup by the troops on July 26. The country was threatened with military intervention by the bloc as a last resort if civilian rule was not restored after talks.