Algeria sent fighter jets to Niger to thwart ‘coup attempt’, president says

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has confirmed that Algerian warplanes were sent to Niamey in late August after an attack by mutineers threatened key sites in Niger’s capital. Tebboune made the remark in excerpts of an interview with local media broadcast ahead of the full interview’s release, saying the deployment responded to actions by parties that had “gone too far.” He did not identify whether he was referring to internal or external actors. Nigerien authorities reported a wave of violence around August 28–30, with sustained gunfire and explosions in Niamey. Renegade soldiers first struck a military base at Diori Hamani International Airport, and later there were attacks on the state broadcaster and the presidential palace. Niger’s Minister of Defence, General Salifou Modi, said a group of military personnel attempted to detain colleagues at Air Base 101 and opened fire on strategic locations before security forces contained the situation. Algeria’s Ministry of Defence stated on August 30 that it had sent fighter jets to Niger ‘‘following unrest,’’ saying two patrols of four Sukhoi Su-30 aircraft had landed at Niamey airport accompanied by an air-to-air refuelling plane. The ministry said the deployment was carried out at the request of Nigerien authorities on a mission to support the Nigerien army in confronting an attempt to destabilise the country. The events have played out against a backdrop of tense regional dynamics. Niger’s military government accused France of orchestrating the failed mutiny, an allegation Paris denied. Algeria and Niger maintain close security and military ties and share a long land border; Algerian leaders have framed Sahel stability as closely tied to their own national security. Niger’s Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine had visited Algeria on August 26–27 as head of a ministerial delegation seeking deeper cooperation, returning to Niamey the night before the unrest began.