UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Thursday demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum a day after a group of soldiers seized power in a coup in the African nation.
Mr Guterres strongly condemned the assault against the democratically elected government and urged the soldiers – who call themselves the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Country – to respect the rule of law.
The Secretary General added he had spoken to Mr Bazoum by phone on Wednesday.
“I don't know exactly where he is, but he was detained,” he said. “He told me he was well, but he told me that the situation was very serious.”
Mr Guterres said he was “extremely worried” about the situation in Niger and warned of the “terrible effects on development” and civilians due to “successive unconstitutional changes of government in the Sahel region”.
The US echoed Mr Guterres's concern and called for Mr Bazoum's.
"We understand that President Bazoum is detained in his residence. We call for the immediate release of President Bazoum and for the respect of the rule of law and public safety," said Vedant Patel, deputy spokesman at the State Department.
Mr Bazoum was seen as the final beacon of hope for western collaboration in the Sahel region following Mali's appeal for assistance from the Russian paramilitary Wagner Group.
The UN chief also expressed alarm over the “disturbing” trend of escalating terrorism and violent extremism in the Sahel, and the threat it poses to regional peace and stability.
“If you look at the region, you have the dramatic terrorist increase of activity in Mali, in Burkina Faso, in Niger and coming closer and closer to the countries of the coasts,” Mr Guterres further stressed.
He added that military regimes are gaining control even amid “a fragile transition in Chad and a horrible situation in Sudan”.
“The whole belt south of the Sahara is becoming an extremely problematic area with terrible consequences for their populations and with terrible consequences for peace and stability in the African continent,” he said.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told journalists on Thursday that humanitarian operations have been suspended in Niger due to the coup.
The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs “is telling us that humanitarian operations are currently on hold, given the situation”, said Mr Dujarric.
Biog:
Age: 34
Favourite superhero: Batman
Favourite sport: anything extreme
Favourite person: Muhammad Ali
Bookshops: A Reader's History by Jorge Carrión (translated from the Spanish by Peter Bush),
Biblioasis
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
JAPAN SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Masaaki Higashiguchi, Shuichi Gonda, Daniel Schmidt
Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo, Tomoaki Makino, Maya Yoshida, Sho Sasaki, Hiroki Sakai, Sei Muroya, Genta Miura, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Midfielders: Toshihiro Aoyama, Genki Haraguchi, Gaku Shibasaki, Wataru Endo, Junya Ito, Shoya Nakajima, Takumi Minamino, Hidemasa Morita, Ritsu Doan
Forwards: Yuya Osako, Takuma Asano, Koya Kitagawa
LIVERPOOL%20TOP%20SCORERS
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COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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'O'
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In numbers
- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100
- Over-80s will rise from 141m in 2017 to 866m in 2100
- Nigeria will become the world’s second most populous country with 791m by 2100, behind India
- China will fall dramatically from a peak of 2.4 billion in 2024 to 732 million by 2100
- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth
MATCH INFO
AC Milan v Inter, Sunday, 6pm (UAE), match live on BeIN Sports
Can NRIs vote in the election?
Indians residing overseas cannot cast their ballot abroad
Non-resident Indians or NRIs can vote only by going to a polling booth in their home constituency
There are about 3.1 million NRIs living overseas
Indians have urged political parties to extend the right to vote to citizens residing overseas
A committee of the Election Commission of India approved of proxy voting for non-resident Indians
Proxy voting means that a person can authorise someone residing in the same polling booth area to cast a vote on his behalf.
This option is currently available for the armed forces, police and government officials posted outside India
A bill was passed in the lower house of India’s parliament or the Lok Sabha to extend proxy voting to non-resident Indians
However, this did not come before the upper house or Rajya Sabha and has lapsed
The issue of NRI voting draws a huge amount of interest in India and overseas
Over the past few months, Indians have received messages on mobile phones and on social media claiming that NRIs can cast their votes online
The Election Commission of India then clarified that NRIs could not vote online
The Election Commission lodged a complaint with the Delhi Police asking it to clamp down on the people spreading misinformation
Gulf Men's League final
Dubai Hurricanes 24-12 Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Q&A with Dash Berlin
Welcome back. What was it like to return to RAK and to play for fans out here again?
It’s an amazing feeling to be back in the passionate UAE again. Seeing the fans having a great time that is what it’s all about.
You're currently touring the globe as part of your Legends of the Feels Tour. How important is it to you to include the Middle East in the schedule?
The tour is doing really well and is extensive and intensive at the same time travelling all over the globe. My Middle Eastern fans are very dear to me, it’s good to be back.
You mix tracks that people know and love, but you also have a visually impressive set too (graphics etc). Is that the secret recipe to Dash Berlin's live gigs?
People enjoying the combination of the music and visuals are the key factor in the success of the Legends Of The Feel tour 2018.
Have you had some time to explore Ras al Khaimah too? If so, what have you been up to?
Coming fresh out of Las Vegas where I continue my 7th annual year DJ residency at Marquee, I decided it was a perfect moment to catch some sun rays and enjoy the warm hospitality of Bab Al Bahr.
