| 2021 Nigerien coup d'état attempt | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Niger Armed ForcesPresidential Guard | Dissenting faction of the armed forces | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Mahamadou IssoufouAbdourahamane Tchiani | Sani Saley Gourouza | ||||||
The2021 Nigerien coup d'etat attempt occurred on 31 March at around 3 amWAT (2 amUTC) after gunfire erupted in the streets ofNiamey, the capital ofNiger, two days before theinauguration ofpresident-electMohamed Bazoum.
Thecoup attempt was staged by elements within themilitary, and was attributed to anAir Force unit based in the area of theNiamey Airport. The alleged leader of the plot was CaptainSani Saley Gourouza, who was in charge of security at the unit's base.[1] After the coup attempt was foiled, the perpetrators were arrested.[2]
The coup attempt took place while Niger was mired in theWar in the Sahel, with marked terrorism and inter-ethnic violence. Sahel countries received France's help against terrorists viaOperation Barkhane, with controversial actions. In 2020, acoup d'état overthrew the government ofMalian PresidentIbrahim Boubacar Keïta. Niger successfully went through the2020–21 Nigerien general election cycle with incoming peaceful presidential transition between two democratically elected presidents, a context unprecedented in Niger. However, the defeated opponent and ex-presidentMahamane Ousmane contested the election results and lodged a legal appeal with the constitutional court, which was rejected.[3] On March 21, 2021, jihadist factions led amassacre in Tilia [fr], where 137 villagers were killed.
According to Cyril Payen ofFrance 24, "heavy weapon fire was heard for half an hour in the area of thepresidential palace. But the Presidential Guard repelled this attack and the situation seems to have come under control", and the noise of the fighting woke up locals around 3am (local time).[4] The majority of the perpetrators were arrested by the government but some, including the leader of the coup Sani Saley Gourouza, are still at large.[5]
Nigerian PresidentMuhammadu Buhari described the act as "naive and old-fashioned".[6] The President of the African Union and theEconomic Community of West African States condemned the attempted coup,[7][8] a sentiment which was also echoed by other African countries, includingChad[9] and Algeria.[10]
The democratic transition went as planned, the swearing-in of the new presidentMohamed Bazoum occurring two days after the attempted coup. However, he was ousted in the2023 Nigerien coup d'état by members of the presidential guard and the military led byAbdourahamane Tchiani, who ironically led the presidential guard in defeating the 2021 coup.[11]
13°31′00″N2°07′00″E / 13.5167°N 2.1167°E /13.5167; 2.1167
