First Independent Mena Newspaper
Iran bought 300 tons of uranium from Niger to be used for its nuclear program in exchange of drones and surface-to-air missiles, London-based media Iran International reported. The news came in a long report earlier this month by Iranian-American reporter Banafsheh Zand, echoing an earlier report on Africa Intelligence that raised secret talks between Tehran […]
Benin accused Niger of sending secret agents to spy in its Seme port where a Chinese-built pipeline was supposed to begin exporting Nigerien gas, before it was blocked by Beninese authorities last month. The arrest of five Nigerien nationals marks a new escalatory move in the standoff between the two ECOWAS neighbors. Benin said the […]
“If we don’t act now,” the humanitarian crisis that is unfolding in the Sahel will “become a problem for the world,” a senior UNHCR official has warned, echoing a senior UNICEF official that has condemned a “distressing” 70% rise in grave violence against children in several strife-torn countries in the region plagued by jihadists and […]
Soldiers from five Sahel states are holding military exercises in Western Niger focusing on counter-terrorism, Niger’s defense minister said. The drills, to run until June 3, bring together Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Niger and Togo, marking the first exercise between the five countries. The exercise includes interoperability, tactical maneuvers, and offering health care to citizens. […]
Benin and Niger finally appear to have resolved their trade dispute following the mediation by the Chinese government, which has led Benin to lift the blockade preventing Niger’s oil export through its territory to China. Tensions between the two West African neighbors began last year after Niger’s ruling junta ousted the country’s democratically elected president […]
Benin-Niger spat: China may try to mediate to access crude oil from ‘its’ pipeline Tensions between Benin and Niger have escalated since the military coup in the latter in July 2023, with the borders between both countries remaining closed and with Benin preventing Niger from using its port to export its crude oil, mostly bound […]
The military coup in Niger has reversed hard-earned gains in the previous decade under democratically elected governments, as it has impacted every sector of Nigerian society, demonstrating the centrality of governance to security, economic, and social outcomes, a new study by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS) has found. The derailing of Niger’s constitutional […]
First Nigerian oil has arrived at the Beninese oil terminal of Sémè Kraké using the Niger-Benin pipeline, with experts hailing the launch of this platform because it signifies Niger’s emergence as a key player in Africa’s oil sector. The recent inauguration of the oil export platform in the town on the border between Benin and […]
The United States has agreed to withdraw its about 1,000 troops from Niger, where it built and operated a major drone base in the desert city of Agadez, in a move that effectively marks a new regional gain for Russia. Washington has accepted the call to pull out its troops from Nigeria and is committed […]
Drug trafficking in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger continues to undermine security and economic development in the West African Sahel region, according to a new report from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) that calls for the dismantling of trafficking networks. In light of the soaring seizures of drugs, especially cocaine, […]