The military coup in Niger

Supporters of the military junta hold up a Russian flag in Niger. Sam Mednick / AP  

The military coup in Niger  

Analysis: Intervention in Niger could affect Europe  

Almost a month has passed since Niger's democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum was kidnapped by the country's military junta, and the West is struggling to find solutions on how to act.  

CNN reporters Natasha Bertrand and Oren Liebermann write that the Biden administration is looking for ways to keep US forces and assets in Niger to continue counter-terrorism operations, even as the military junta is increasingly unlikely to relinquish power.  

"It could become a similar situation to when the US left Afghanistan and the Taliban took over".  

According to Olayinka Ajala of The Conversation, it is not only Nigerians that will be affected if the West African cooperation organization Ecowas chooses to intervene militarily. He writes that resources to fight al-Qaeda and IS in the region will be redirected. The seven countries bordering Niger will be affected by a mass influx of refugees, and as a consequence more refugees will seek Europe. 

"I think the best option is to rule out military action and instead negotiate a short transition period to restore democracy," he writes.  

Supporters of the military coup in Niger demonstrate in Niamey. Fatahoulaye Hassane Midou / AP  

The military coup in Niger  

Niger suffers from false rumors during the military coup  

AFP has dismissed over a dozen false rumours, misleading videos and doctored audio clips on social media that either support or discredit the Nigerian coup leaders after they toppled President Mohamed Bazoum in July.  

In May, Bazoum told the British newspaper The Independent that the Russian private army Wagner had sponsored "disinformation campaigns against Niger". However, some analysts said there was little evidence of organized, large-scale offensives aimed at spreading fake content.  

- Even so, coup supporters have increased the threat of conflict with the West African cooperation organization Ecowas to mobilize support in a region where anti-imperialist and anti-Western views are popular and easy t