Mohamed Bazoum, the democratically elected president of Niger, said he is being kept isolated and forced to eat dry rice and pasta by the military junta who overthrew him and are refusing to cede power despite international pressure.
In a series of text messages to a friend, Bazoum said he has been “deprived of all human contact” since Friday, with no one supplying him food or medicine. Bazoum’s messages were given to CNN with the ousted president’s consent. Bazoum said he has been living without electricity for a week, as have many Nigeriens. Nigeria supplies much of neighboring Niger’s electricity but cut off the power in response to the coup.
, the bloc that has been leading the regional response to the political crisis in Niger. leaders are due to meet on Thursday in Nigeria to discuss the coup, though specifics regarding the gathering remain unclear. The regional bloc had given the junta one week to return to their barracks and reinstall Bazoum, but that deadline came and went on Sunday without any change.
has maintained that its preference is to find a diplomatic solution to the standoff, but has not ruled out using force to restore constitutional order and bring Bazoum’s government back to power. On Monday, the Nigerien military brought troop reinforcements into the capital to prepare for a potential foreign intervention and reassure nervous residents, some of whom have either fled the city or began stocking up on necessities.
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