Niger President accuses France of responsibility for the kidnapping of Westerners in his country and Algeria
Niger President General Abdourahamane Tiani accused France of being behind the recent kidnapping of Westerners in his country and Algeria, asserting that he possesses evidence to prove this, but without revealing it.
In an interview with Niger state television that lasted more than three hours, Tiani said that France had recruited a man named “Boubacar Dabongel,” and that he, through “three bandits: Momo, Ibrahim, and Omar, kidnapped a Spaniard near Tamanrasset (southern Algeria) and an Austrian and a Swiss woman in Agadez (northern Niger)”.
General Tiani added in the interview broadcast on Saturday evening that secret meetings were held in Abuja (the Nigerian capital) on January 25 and February 3, 2025, bringing together representatives of France, the United States, Nigeria, Benin, and Ivory Coast, as well as representatives of terrorist groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State in West Africa, with the aim of “strengthening the financing, armament, and logistical support of these groups to carry out subversive acts against the countries of the Sahel Union (Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso)”.
He stated that some humanitarian organizations active in the region were used as conduits to finance these operations.
According to him, it was agreed that the amount of money less than one billion CFA francs would be provided through the Niger Red Cross account, while larger amounts would be provided through the Red Cross in Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Nigeria.
General Abdourahamane Tiani praised the joint force of the Sahel Alliance, adding that it had conducted three joint military operations since its establishment, the last of which began in January and ended in February.
He considered this force to be “a reality that has proven itself on the ground,” in contrast to the standby force of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which he described as ineffective.
The accusations against General Abdourahamane Tiani, who was inaugurated president in late March for a renewable five-year term based on the outcomes of dialogue sessions absent from the opposition, come amid continued tensions between his country, Mali, and Burkina Faso, with France and some other Western and regional actors, following the military coups that took place in the three countries in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
