General Abdourahmane Tchiani, also known as Omar Tchiani, has declared himself the new leader of Niger following a startling coup.
The takeover began on Wednesday, when the presidential guards unit, which Gen Tchiani leads, seized the country’s President, Mohamed Bazoum.
This shatters Niger’s first peaceful and democratic transition since independence in 1960.
President Mohamed Bazoum is thought to be in good health, and still held captive by his own guards.
The coup has been roundly condemned by international actors including the African Union, West African regional bloc (Ecowas), the EU, and the UN.
Who is General Abdourahmane Tchiani?
Gen Tchiani, 62, has been in charge of the presidential guard since 2011, and was promoted to the rank of general in 2018 by former President Mahamadou Issoufou.
As per reports from APA news agency, Tchiani hails from Niger’s western region of Tillaberi, a significant recruitment area for the army.
Since 2015, he has held the position of heading the presidential guards and was known as a close confidant of former President Mahamadou Issoufou, who served as the country’s leader until 2021.
Interestingly, Gen Tchiani played a pivotal role in thwarting an attempted coup in March 2021 when a military unit sought to seize the presidential palace. This incident occurred just days before Mohamed Bazoum, the newly elected President, was set to be sworn in.
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Bazoum’s successful election marked Niger’s first peaceful and democratic transfer of power since gaining independence from France in 1960.
Upon assuming office, he retained Gen Tchiani as the head of the presidential guards, comprising a specialized unit of around 2,000 soldiers.
While the exact motivations behind Gen Tchiani’s involvement in the coup remain obscure, there have been rumors suggesting that the deposed president had considered dismissing him just days before the dramatic events unfolded. Paul Melly, an expert on Niger at the London-based think tank Chatham House, shared these insights with Al Jazeera.