US urges several embassy personnel and their families to leave Niger
US urges several embassy personnel and their families to leave Niger
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!After military officials took control of the country, the United States ordered the evacuation of some staff members and their families from the embassy, according to the State Department on Wednesday. However, the mission will stay open, and senior leadership will continue to operate from there.
A crucial ally of the West in the conflict with Islamist rebels is Niger. Foreign governments have denounced the coup out of concern that it may give the terrorists room to advance.
“Given the ongoing developments in Niger and out of an abundance of caution, the Department of State is ordering the temporary departure of non-emergency U.S. government personnel and eligible family members from the U.S. Embassy in Niamey,” said State Department spokesman Matthew Miller in a statement.
“The United States is still dedicated to upholding democracy in Niger and our partnership with the Nigerese people. At the highest levels, we continue to engage in diplomacy,” Miller added.
According to him, the embassy is still accessible to Americans in need of restricted emergency services.
Prior to the statement, a U.S. official who requested anonymity claimed that military aircraft would not be utilized in the removal of American soldiers from Niger; instead, State Department-chartered aircraft would be used. The official stated that the embassy’s “core” employees will stay.
American citizens are advised not to visit Niger by the State Department.
As part of counterinsurgency and training missions, France, the United States, Germany, and Italy have troops in Niger, assisting the army in battling organizations affiliated with al Qaeda and Islamic State.
European citizens are being evacuated from Niger by France and Italy.
As of yet, no notification regarding the withdrawal of troops has been made. The American military maintains two bases in Niger, where there are around 1,100 American soldiers.
After the sudden escalation of violence between the military and the heavily armed Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group on April 15 turned residential areas into war zones and forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee, the United States came under fire for how it handled the evacuation of American citizens in Sudan.
Due to the security dangers, Washington evacuated all government employees from the American embassy in Khartoum and put a halt to activities there. However, American citizens found difficulties exiting the nation due to the unrest as well as robbery and looting.
