French troops begin withdrawal from coup-hit Niger

The French army said Tuesday it had begun withdrawing its troops from Niger after being ordered out of the country by the leaders of a coup that ousted a pro-Paris president.

The move kicks off a complex and sensitive process that Paris expects to be completed by the end of the year, drawing the curtain on another French anti-jihadist operation in Africa.

“The first troops have left,” the spokesman of the French chief of staff told AFP, confirming an announcement Monday by Niger’s military leadership, which said that the 1,400-strong French contingent would begin leaving Tuesday.

A French defence source said the first group of soldiers that were considered a priority for evacuation for health or humanitarian reasons flew out of Niger on Monday.

Niger had spoken of convoys of troops being escorted out of the country overland by the Nigerien army, without saying where they would go.

The withdrawal was expected to cause logistical headaches for the French, with few safe routes out of a region plagued by myriad jihadist groups.