El-Rufai warns ECOWAS against military intervention in Niger

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El-Rufai warns ECOWAS against military intervention in Niger

The former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has cautioned the Economic Community of West African States against military intervention in Niger Republic.

The ECOWAS defence chiefs had on Thursday pledged readiness to participate in a standby force that would restore democracy in Niger after generals toppled and detained President Mohamed Bazoum.

In a statement via X, formerly known as Twitter, El-Rufai said, “As ECOWAS beats the drums of war, I recall the 1970s rock classic by Dire Straits – ‘Brothers in Arms’, because a war within our subregion is a war between brothers. Indeed, the people of Niger Republic are one and the same with those living in Northern Nigeria.

“Let us bend therefore over backwards to avoid this civil war between brothers.”

PUNCH reports that the Nigerian Guild of Editors had urged President Bola Tinubu to employ diplomacy in addressing the coup in Niger Republic, saying, “military intervention is now regarded as an aberration around the world.”