‘UNDER ATTACK’

‘I Write This as a Hostage’: Niger Prez Issues Direct Plea to U.S. After Coup

Ousted Niger President Mohamed Bazoum, who was seized by his own guards last week in a military coup, wrote a stunning op-ed Thursday night while in the custody of his captors.

The President of Niger has issued a plea for help directly to the U.S. after he was ousted and imprisoned in a military coup on July 26. President Mohamed Bazoum wrote in a piece for The Washington Post Thursday night: “I write this as a hostage ... I am just one of hundreds of citizens who have been arbitrarily and illegally imprisoned.” Turmoil has plagued the west African state since Bazoum was overthrown, with coup leaders on Thursday confirming they were pulling the country’s ambassadors out from the U.S., France, Nigeria and Togo. In his op-ed, Bazoum explains he was democratically elected in 2021 and pleads his case, including the many positives to come out of Niger’s relationship with the U.S., adding “in our hour of need, I call on the U.S. government and the entire international community to help us restore our constitutional order.”