Page 46 - Nigerien News Today

The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency has aid the ban on flights between Nigeria and Niger Republic persists.

Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger announced their intention to leave Ecowas. This may be a pointer to a deeper crisis in the Sahel region.

Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have all experienced military coups in the past few years. They say the regional trade organization is not helping them fight terrorism but rather imposing severe sanctions on them. Ridwan Karim Dini-Osman reports from Ghana on the implications of their withdrawals.

A month ago, media umbrella organisation, Maison de la Presse was prevented from holding its general assembly to elect a new board of directors and now it has been suspended.

The Nigerian Government has received a stern warning from the Niger Republic for violating its sovereignty and jeopardising the friendly relations between the two nations.

Last Sunday, the military rulers of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger quit West African economic union ECOWAS. It’s a major blow to the regional integration project — and a rebuke to Emmanuel Macron’s efforts to interfere in France’s former colonies.

The interior minister of Niger’s decision this week to suspend the activities of Maison de la Presse (Press House), an independent media organization, is the latest in a series of government actions to crack down on the press and free expression in the West African country.

Airlines serving Niamey, capital of Niger, have decided to no longer take French passengers to this destination, several of whom were recently turned away upon News

On the flip side, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger's foreign ministries formally notified the ECOWAS Commission of their decisions to leave the bloc in written notices dated Jan. 29. According to the bloc's treaty, member states wishing to withdraw must give a written one-year notice. So the move to quit the 15-member bloc could yet take time to implement, opening a door for negotiations.

French nationals will no longer be allowed to fly into Niger, airline sources said on Thursday, as the rift between Paris and Niamey deepens following last year's military coup.