UNHCR warning about humanitarian crisis in Niger

  The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has warned of a humanitarian crisis in Niger. Emmanuel Gignac, the representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Niger, said that while there is no political solution for Niger, continued conflicts in the country could lead to a humanitarian crisis. The representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Niger said that after the ouster of the country's President Mohamed Bazoum, Niger remains in a state of chaos, and violence and attacks by armed groups in the country, especially near the border of Mali and Burkina Faso, have caused more than 20,000 people to flee their homes over the past month. Emanuel Gignac also said that the High Commissioner for Refugees and other organizations associated with the United Nations have identified strategies to deal with possible emergencies in Niger.

And this despite the fact that ECOWAS has imposed sanctions against Niger and mentioned the possibility of military intervention in this country in order to return the ousted Niger President Mohamed Bazoum. Following the establishment of a military government in Niger under pressure from France and the United States, ECOWAS rebelled against the Niger Military Council and announced that it was preparing for military intervention in Niger to return Bazoum to power. However, last Friday evening, the ECOWAS commissioner announced that the group has no plans to attack Niger and will use all peaceful means to bring back Mohamed Bazoum. Political developments in Niger, due to the country's importance in the Sahel region, have caused strong reactions from some of Niger's neighbors, as well as some countries outside the region, to the point that an ECOWAS threat of a military attack on Niger was met with reactions from Mali and Burkina -Faso, so both countries stationed their military aircraft and military aircraft in Niger, and Niger issued permission for military entry into Mali and Burkina Faso when necessary.

On July 26, 2023, Niger's presidential guard fired the country's president, Mohamed Bazoum, on charges of corruption, pandering to the West, and indifference to poverty, and refused to bring him back in response to demands from the UN, Western countries, and ECOWAS. Although Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world, it also has the largest uranium reserves. This country was a French colony until 1960, and that year it declared its independence from that country.