Security forces in Niger neutralized an armed mutiny in the capital city of Niamey on Saturday following hours of intense overnight gunfire.
The mutineers surrendered around noon on August 29 after security forces and the gendarmerie repelled their attempts to seize key facilities across the capital.
Details of the uprising were disclosed by Russian Ambassador to Niger Viktor Voropayev during an interview with news network RT.
Voropayev said residents in central Niamey heard heavy shooting starting on the night of Saturday, August 29. The gunfire echoed across central districts containing the presidential palace and major hotels, as well as in the area surrounding the city airport.
According to the ambassador, the shooting continued almost until morning before a brief lull occurred. Gunfire then broke out again until the insurgents chose to surrender around midday, after which they were neutralized.
Attacks on State Television and Hotel
During the armed rebellion, the insurgents attempted to take control of the state television station and tried to enter the territory of a hotel housing staff from the Russian embassy.
Russian lawmakers who had arrived in the West African nation to attend a parliamentary meeting of the Alliance of Sahel States were also inside the hotel during the raid.
Voropayev said security forces and the gendarmerie successfully repelled the mutineers' attempt to breach the hotel complex.
Sahel Region Security and Aftermath
Niamey is the capital and largest city of Niger, a landlocked West African nation located in the semi-arid Sahel region. The country is a member of the Alliance of Sahel States, a mutual security and political bloc established with neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso. The gendarmerie operates as a branch of the military charged with internal security and public order.
The situation across the capital normalized by the evening of August 29 following the defeat of the mutineers.
Niger's military previously extended thanks to the Africa Corps of the Russian Armed Forces for providing operational assistance in putting down the mutiny. The Africa Corps is a Russian military entity operating in several African nations under the direction of Russia's Ministry of Defence.
