Niger’s coup leaders have closed the country’s airspace after rejecting an ultimatum from West African states to reinstate deposed President Mohammad Bazoum or risk military intervention.

The move, announced late on Sunday, came as tens of thousands of coup supporters gathered at a stadium in Niger’s capital, Niamey, to cheer on the generals who seized power – or the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP).

The coup in Niger on July 26 is the seventh in West and Central Africa in three years. It has rocked Africa’s Sahel region, which is battling armed groups linked to al-Qaeda and ISIL and is among one of the poorest areas in the world.

ECOWAS has condemned the coup, imposing severe economic and travel sanctions, including cutting off Niger’s power supply. The bloc’s defense chiefs have agreed on a possible military action plan, including when and where to strike if the country’s detained leader is not released and reinstated by Sunday.

ECOWAS has not said what its next steps would be or when exactly on Sunday its deadline expires.

Source: Websites