World

Niger joins list of Sahel African countries to experience military coups

Published

2 years ago

July 31, 2023

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Niger is the latest country in the Sahel region of northwest Africa to experience a military coup.

Since Mali’s armed takeover in August 2020, several neighbouring countries have seen a similar pattern emerge.

Elected officials are overthrown amid growing dissatisfaction with the political regime, which is often accused of corruption and failing to fend off Islamic extremist groups operating in the region.

Coup leaders then promise to implement a new, more democratic regime, but this process gets delayed and tensions remain unresolved.

In some countries, this has resulted in further coups and instability, which leaves them vulnerable to hostile forces, including both the Jihadist groups and Russian mercenaries.

Here Sky News looks at the timeline of events across the Sahel belt in recent years and what the consequences have been.

Why the Sahel?

The Sahel region of African nations below the Sahara Desert include Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger and Guinea.

They are some of the poorest in the world and vulnerable to both political instability and climate change.

Since French colonial rule ended in the 1960s and democratic regimes were instated for the first time, France has maintained a military presence there.

But in the last decade Jihadist groups linked to al-Qaeda and Islamic State have been growing in power and influence from northern Mali into neighbouring states.

Eager to minimise instability and Islamist influence, France and other Western nations have invested heavily in security – using it as a base for the wider fight against terrorism in the region.

But after France withdrew troops from Mali in 2022, military leaders are moving away from their former Western allies and towards Russia – whose Wagner mercenary group now operates throughout the belt.

Niger

Last week Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum was ousted from power by the military, led by General Abdourahmane Tchiani.

Mr Bazoum was the first democratically-elected leader in Niger since the end of French colonial rule in 1960.

He was overthrown after soldiers surrounded the presidential palace in the capital Niamey. They claimed they wanted to “put an end to the regime” amid a “deteriorating security situation and bad governance”.

The Junta has since closed all borders and imposed a curfew.

Western allies have condemned the coup, fearing the armed forces will move away from their backing and increasingly towards Moscow.

Mali

The summer of 2020 saw a wave of protests grip Mali.

Demonstrators were angry with the government’s failure to control fighting between warring factions in the north and south of the country, allegations of corruption and mishandling of the coronavirus pandemic.

On 18 August the Malian Armed Forces staged a mutiny.

Soldiers led by Colonel Assimi Goita overthrew a military base in the town of Kati before trucks closed in on the capital of Bamako.

President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and other government officials were detained by the group of military leaders who called themselves the National Committee for the Salvation of the People.

On 12 September they agreed to an 18-month timeframe for civilian rule being reintroduced.

But seven months into the transition process in May 2021 the interim president and prime minister were ousted in a second coup and Col Goita was made president of the transitional government.

France withdrew its troops from Mali in the summer of 2022. In June this year, a referendum on a new constitution designed to strengthen presidential powers was held, with 97% voting in favour.

Critics say the vote was designed to keep Col Goita and his team in power beyond the elections – currently scheduled for February 2024.

Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso saw two coups in just eight months last year.

On 24 January 2022, soldiers appeared on national TV to say they had seized power from democratically-elected President Roch Marc Christian Kabore.

Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba was sworn in as his replacement on 16 February.

But on 30 September soldiers ousted him and instead named Captain Ibrahim Traore as transitional president.

At the same time, there was growing discontent with France’s ongoing presence in the country.

Protesters attacked symbols of the former colonial power.

Captain Traore’s national assembly was formed largely of army officers who promised democratic elections and the return of civilian power by July 2024.

But at the beginning of this year, the president ousted French troops and instead looked to Russia, which has been operating in Mali, for support in fending off Islamist advances.

Sudan

Following three decades of autocratic rule under President Omar al-Bashir, in 2019 the military overthrew him and imposed the Transitional Military Council to oversee a so-called peaceful transition of power.

This was led by transitional prime minister Abdalla Hamdok and a power-sharing body of military officers and civilians.

But in October 2021, fighting between the army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) saw the prime minister and his family detained and the power-sharing agreement abandoned.

The coup was led by General Abdel Fattah al-Buhran.

Since then fighting in Sudan has resulted in hundreds of deaths with no clear path to a democratic resolution.

Earlier this year al-Buhran accused the head of the RSF, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, of an attempted coup.

Chad

Chad remains under military rule since its long-time president Idriss Deby was killed in fighting against rebels in the north of the country in April 2021.

His son, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, now leads the country as the interim head-of-state, a move that goes against the country’s constitution.

He promised a transition to democracy within 18 months.

But when that period elapsed in autumn 2022, it was extended by another two years, triggering protests and a subsequent military crackdown.

Guinea

Guinea’s coup began on 5 September 2021 when President Alpha Conde was overthrown by the leader of the army Colonel Mamady Doumbouya.

Justifying the decision, the former French legionnaire said the army had no choice but to take action against corruption, human rights abuses and economic errors under President Conde.

The government and constitution were dissolved and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) gave an initial deadline of 25 April for reinstating civilian rule.

Guinea’s junta is under sanctions while the National Transition Council says it is working to its 39-month deadline.

World

25% of young children and pregnant women malnourished in Gaza, charity says, as PM vows to fly critical medical cases to UK

Published

6 hours ago

July 26, 2025

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25% of young children and pregnant women malnourished in Gaza, charity says, as PM vows to fly critical medical cases to UK

A charity has warned 25% of young children and pregnant women in Gaza are now malnourished, with Sir Keir Starmer vowing to evacuate children who need “critical medical assistance” to the UK.

MSF, also known as Doctors Without Borders, said Israel’s “deliberate use of starvation as a weapon” has reached unprecedented levels – with patients and healthcare workers both fighting to survive.

It claimed that, at one of its clinics in Gaza City, rates of severe malnutrition in children under five have trebled over the past two weeks – and described the lack of food and water on the ground as “unconscionable”.

The charity also criticised the high number of fatalities seen at aid distribution sites, with one British surgeon accusing IDF soldiers of shooting civilians “almost like a game of target practice”.

MSF’s deputy medical coordinator in Gaza, Dr Mohammed Abu Mughaisib, said: “Those who go to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s food distributions know that they have the same chance of receiving a sack of flour as they do of leaving with a bullet in their head.”

The UN also estimates that Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 people seeking food – the majority near the militarised distribution sites of the US-backed aid distribution scheme run by the GHF.

In a statement on Friday, the IDF had said it “categorically rejects the claims of intentional harm to civilians”, and reports of incidents at aid distribution sites were “under examination”.

The GHF has also previously disputed that these deaths were connected with its organisation’s operations, with director Johnnie Moore telling Sky News: “We just want to feed Gazans. That’s the only thing that we want to do.”

Israel says it has let enough food into Gaza and has accused the UN of failing to distribute it, in what the foreign ministry has labelled as “a deliberate ploy” to defame the country.

‘Humanitarian catastrophe must end’

In a video message posted on X late last night, Sir Keir Starmer condemned the scenes in Gaza as “appalling” and “unrelenting” – and said “the images of starvation and desperation are utterly horrifying”.

The prime minister added: “The denial of aid to children and babies is completely unjustifiable, just as the continued captivity of hostages is completely unjustifiable.

“Hundreds of civilians have been killed while seeking aid – children, killed, whilst collecting water. It is a humanitarian catastrophe, and it must end.”

Sir Keir confirmed that the British government is now “accelerating efforts” to evacuate children from Gaza who need critical medical assistance, so they can be brought to the UK for specialist treatment.

Israel has now said that foreign countries will be able to airdrop aid into Gaza. While the PM says the UK will now “do everything we can” to get supplies in via this route, he said this decision has come “far too late”.

Last year, the RAF dropped aid into Gaza, but humanitarian organisations warned it wasn’t enough and was potentially dangerous. In March 2024, five people were killed when an aid parachute failed and supplies fell on them.

For now, Sir Keir has rejected calls to follow French President Emmanuel Macron and recognise a Palestinian state – despite more than 220 MPs signing a cross-party letter to demand he takes this step.

The prime minister is instead demanding a ceasefire and “lasting peace” – and says he will only consider an independent state as part of a negotiated peace deal.

World

Israel allows foreign countries to parachute aid into Gaza

Published

21 hours ago

July 25, 2025

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Israel allows foreign countries to parachute aid into Gaza

Israel has said foreign countries can drop aid into Gaza from today.

A senior IDF official told Sky News on Friday: “Starting today, Israel will allow foreign countries to parachute aid into Gaza.

“Starting this afternoon, the WCK organisation began reactivating its kitchens.”

Humanitarian aid organisation World Central Kitchen paused its operation in Gaza in November after a number of its workers were killed in an Israeli airstrike last year.

Aid workers in Gaza – who help provide food, medicine and shelter for the millions displaced there – have been affected by the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

In recent weeks hundreds of Palestinians have been killed while waiting for food and aid.

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World

‘Almost like a game of target practice’: British surgeon says IDF shooting Gazans at aid points

Published

1 day ago

July 24, 2025

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'Almost like a game of target practice': British surgeon says IDF shooting Gazans at aid points

A British surgeon who recently returned from Gaza has told Sky News that there is “profound malnutrition” among the population – and claims IDF soldiers are shooting civilians at aid points “like a game of target practice”.

Dr Nick Maynard spent four weeks working inside Nasser Hospital, where a lack of food has left medics struggling to treat children and toddlers.

The conditions inside the hospital, in the south of the Strip, have been documented in a Sky News report.

Dr Maynard told The World with Yalda Hakim: “I met several doctors who had cartons of formula feed in their luggage – and they were all confiscated by the Israeli border guards. Nothing else got confiscated, just the formula feed.

“There were four premature babies who died during the first two weeks when I was in Nasser Hospital – and there will be many, many more deaths until the Israelis allow proper food to get in there.”

In other developments:

• Israel and the US have recalled their teams from Gaza ceasefire talks

• US envoy Steve Witkoff has accused Hamas “of failing to act in good faith”

• France has announced that it will recognise the state of Palestine

• An influential group of MPs is calling on the UK to “immediately” do the same

‘They were shells’

Dr Nick Maynard has been going to Gaza for the past 15 years – and this is his third visit to the territory since the war began.

The British surgeon added that virtually all of the kids in the paediatric unit of Nasser Hospital are being fed with sugar water.

“They’ve got a small amount of formula feed for very small babies, but not enough,” he warned.

Dr Maynard said the lack of aid has also had a huge impact on his colleagues.

“I saw people I’d known for years and I didn’t recognise some of them,” he added. “Two colleagues had lost 20kg and 30kg respectively. They were shells, they’re all hungry.

“They’re going to work every day, then going home to their tents where they have no food.”

IDF ‘shooting Gazans at aid points’

Elsewhere in the interview, Dr Maynard claimed Israeli soldiers are shooting civilians at aid points “almost like a game of target practice”.

He has operated on boys as young as 11 who had been “shot at food distribution points” run by the US and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

“They had gone to get food for their starving families and they were shot,” he said.

“I operated on one 12-year-old boy who died on the operating table because his injuries were so severe.”

Dr Maynard continued: “What was even more distressing was the pattern of injuries that we saw, the clustering of injuries to particular body parts on certain days.

“One day they’d be coming in predominately with gunshot wounds to the head or the neck, another day to the abdomen.

“Twelve days ago, four young teenage boys came in, all of whom had been shot in the testicles and deliberately so.

“The clustering was far too obvious to be accidental, and it seemed to us like this was almost like a game of target practice.

“I would never have believed this possible unless I’d witnessed this with my own eyes.”

Sky News has contacted the Israeli Defence Forces for comment.

An IDF spokesperson previously told Sky News it “strongly rejected” the accusations that its forces were instructed to deliberately shoot at civilians.

“To be clear, IDF directives prohibit deliberate attacks on civilians,” the spokesperson said, adding that the incidents are “being examined by the relevant IDF authorities”.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has been managing the supply of aid to Gaza since Israel lifted an 11-week blockade in May.

It has four aid distribution sites, all of which are located in Israeli military zones, with journalists prohibited from entering.

More than 1,000 people have been reported killed while trying to receive food aid since the GHF took over, according to the UN.

UNRWA, its relief agency for Gaza, has heavily criticised the scheme.

Commissioner general Philippe Lazzarini said: “The so-called ‘GHF’ distribution scheme is a sadistic death trap. Snipers open fire randomly on crowds as if they are given a licence to kill.”

Just a fraction of the aid trucks needed are making it into the enclave, the UN has said, while multiple aid groups and the World Health Organisation have warned Gazans are facing “mass starvation”.

Mr Lazzarini quoted a colleague on Thursday and said malnourished Palestinians in the Gaza “are neither dead nor alive, they are walking corpses”.