Niger Coup Leaders Accuse France of Breaching Airspace, Releasing Terrorists

French forces breached a ban on Niger’s air space and freed captured “terrorists,” Niger’s military leaders asserted in a statement on national TV yesterday.
Coup leaders’ spokesperson Colonel Amadou Abdramane claimed in a video address on Wednesday that a unit of the National Guard was attacked at 6:30 am (05:30 GMT) in Bourkou Bourkou, about 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) away from the Samira gold mine in the Tillaberi region.
He alleged that France had released 16 “terrorist elements” who allegedly planned an attack on Nigerien military positions in the tri-border area.
“We are witnessing a real plan of destabilization of our country, orchestrated by French forces,” Abdramane said.
The French government rejected Niger’s new military rulers’ accusations, according to international news outlets, saying that French aircraft movements were part of an earlier agreement with Nigerien forces.