Military junta reopens Niger’s airspace after 30 days

The Niger Republic military junta has reopened the country’s airspace more than one month after ousting President Mohammed Basoum in a bloodless coup.

The military said on Monday the airspace was now accessible for both civil and commercial aircraft with immediate effect.

The junta closed the country’s airspace a few days after ousting Basoum in a putsch on July 26 to prevent the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) from intervening.

The regional bloc has threatened to activate its standby force to push out the coup plotters from the presidential palace and restore constitutional order in Niger.

READ ALSO: Gabon’s military junta announces reopening of borders

The head of the elite Presidential Guard, Gen. Abdourahamane Tchiani, who took over as Niger’s caretaker leader, has proposed a three-year transition programme in the West African country.

ECOWAS had however rejected the proposal and demanded a quick restoration of democratic order in the Niger Republic, a country of 26 million people and one of the poorest in the world.

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