SAA event in Niamey area, Niger on Sat 29th August 2026

Niger's ruling junta said it was back in control after mutinous soldiers set off armed clashes in Niger's capital Saturday, moving on the presidential palace and disrupting the state broadcaster.

Niger has been ruled for three years by a military junta led by General Abdourahamane Tiani that has struggled to contain jihadist violence flaring in the west African country for around a decade.

After hours of heavy exchanges around some of its most sensitive sites, the junta said it had largely wrested back control from the rebel soldiers.

By Saturday evening, diplomatic and security sources told AFP that members of Niger's presidential guard helped by Russian forces had recaptured the air base, killing some of the mutineers.

Kremlin-controlled paramilitary forces from Africa Corps received a request for assistance ​in neutralising the mutineers, Russia's ambassador to Niger, Viktor Voropaev, confirmed ‌in an interview with TASS news agency on Saturday.

When fighting broke out shortly after midnight, soldiers blocked access to the presidential palace and the national television station, Tele Sahel, which went off the air for just over an hour, before being restored around 10am (0900 GMT).

Niger's ruling junta later declared, in a statement read on state television, that it was gradually taking back control after hours of clashes.

"There was an attempt by insurgents from the Nigerien armed forces to enter the presidential palace," a security source told AFP, adding that the presidential guard had pushed them back. 

Niger's defence minister, General Salifou Mody, said on state television that a group of soldiers had held some troops hostage at a barracks in Niamey, opening fire at "certain sensitive sites" in the city, without specifying which ones.

Troops and security forces had quickly taken back control, he added, calling on local people to remain calm.

'Bursts of gunfire'

Niger has been ruled for three years by a military junta led by General Abdourahamane Tiani that has struggled to contain jihadist violence flaring in the West African country for around a decade.

"Everything is calm again, we can't hear any more shooting," a resident of the Yantala district close to the presidential palace said late Saturday morning.

The gunfire began in the early hours of Saturday morning, prompting the military to issue a statement on its social media pages urging people to stay calm and "avoid sharing unverified information".

"Our defence and security forces have been mobilised for the defence of the homeland," the statement said.

One resident said that there was "heavy gunfire and explosions" at Base 101 in Niamey, a claim confirmed by several other witnesses.

 Junta supporters called for "sincere patriots" to demonstrate in support of the authorities at a major Niamey square.  

By late afternoon, a few dozen people had converged on the square, where military music praising General Tiani was playing while a platform intended for speeches was being set up.

Neighbouring Algeria condemned Saturday's events and pledged support for the Niamey government.

The first shots were heard at about 1am local time and continued until daybreak, according to a video published by a local journalist filming the area around the airport.

Another resident said he heard "bursts of gunfire" at about 7am local time, adding that the weapons heard "are not the kind that terrorists on motorbikes can carry".

"I went to get credit for my phone. I saw a military vehicle heading towards the base that had to turn back," he said.

Another resident in the west of Niamey said he heard sporadic small-arms fire at about 5am.

Videos online showed armoured vehicles deployed to reinforce the neighbourhood near the airport.

Rival jihadist groups

Niamey airport has been targeted twice this year by jihadists, first by the Islamic State in the Sahel (EIS) in January, then in late June by its rival, the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), the Sahel branch of al-Qaeda.

The jihadist groups not only target civilians and the military but are also struggling for dominance over each other in the Sahel, and especially in Niger.

Twenty assailants were killed and four soldiers wounded in the January assault, authorities said at the time.

In June, at least 11 soldiers and two civilians were killed, as well as 22 attackers, according to the defence ministry. Both attacks were repelled by the army.

The EIS and JNIM are also active in neighbouring allies Burkina Faso and Mali, which are also ruled by military juntas that seized power in coups.

The three countries quit the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) bloc, turned their backs on traditional Western partners in the fight against jihadist violence, especially France, and sought closer ties with Russia.

Air Force Base 101, located within the international airport complex, is home to the headquarters of Russia's Africa Corps in Niamey and the command of the unified force of the Alliance of Sahel States, of which Niger is a member with Burkina Faso and Mali.

The site is sensitive. Between December and January, it hosted a large shipment of uranium concentrate, which was held up while awaiting export. No movement of the shipment has been identified since.