The last French troops deployed in Niger to help fight a decade-old Islamist insurgency in the Sahel left the country on Friday, sealing a withdrawal that has dealt a further blow to France's influence in West Africa.

Army officers who seized power in Niger in July made France's military exit one of their key demands, echoing juntas in neighbouring Burkina Faso and Mali who severed long-standing security ties with France after coups in 2020-2022.

After initially pushing back, France's President Emmanuel Macron said in September that 1,500 troops would pull out of Niger by the end of the year.

The decision followed a full withdrawal from Mali completed in August 2022 and the end of military cooperation with Burkina Faso in February even as those countries faced worsening attacks from Islamist insurgents.

Until the coup, Niger had remained a key security partner of France and the United States, which used it as a base to help in the regional fight with groups linked to Al Qaeda and Islamic State that have killed thousands and displaced millions across the Sahel and beyond.

A document marking the official end of France's military engagement with Niger was signed by both parties in the capital Niamey on Friday, according to a Reuters reporter.

A last group of French soldiers in fatigues and backpacks then boarded a military plane that took off shortly after.

Source:

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https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/last-french-troops-leave-niger-military-cooperation-officially-ends-2023-12-22/

Very good. Make everybody dey him dey. Let Africa be truly independent.

France be using the guise of fighting terrorism to exploit resources in Niger. Same way they came under the guise of spreading Christianity in the 19th century only to start moving our resources in Africa to develop industries in Europe.

I know they are already fighting back but this time they'd loose.
Also a wake up call to our leaders to be astute and awake in moving Africa up amongst the community of nations.