Africaupdated 1h ago2 min read
Algerian Parliament Approves Troop Deployment To Niger In Emergency Session
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Parliament's upper house unanimously approves sending troops to Niger. First Algerian cross-border military deployment since 1973.
Algeria backs Niger troops
Algeria’s upper house of parliament approved the deployment of troops to neighbouring Niger in an emergency session, and the People’s National Assembly was expected to vote later Sunday, according to El Khabar. Algeria’s parliament approved the move as a precedent for the Algerian army’s missions outside its borders since the October 1973 war, and the decision relied on Article 91 of the Algerian Constitution.
Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf presented the proposal to deploy armed forces to Niger, and the Algerian constitution states that the president may decide to send units of the People’s National Army abroad after Parliament has ratified by a two-thirds majority in each chamber. The deployment was framed as protecting energy facilities in Niger, and the vote followed Nigerien Defense Minister General Salifou Modi’s visit to Algeria where he met President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Chief of Staff of the People’s National Army General Said Chanegriha.
Constitutional vote and numbers
The Council of the Nation held an emergency session on Sunday to vote on troop deployment, and the People’s National Assembly was expected to hold a separate session later in the evening, according to El Khabar. An Anadolu Ajansı report said all 148 members participating in the Council of the Nation vote supported the decision, with 131 members present and 17 votes cast by proxy, and it said Article 91, paragraph two, requires approval by two-thirds of the council’s members.
A BBC account said 148 out of 174 members attended and voted unanimously in favor of sending units of the army to "protect energy facilities in Niger," and it said Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf presented the proposal. The BBC also reported that President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said: “We will protect Niger at any cost,” and it added that he said “We stand by it.”
What Algeria says it will do
Algerian officials said the military units to be deployed would be tasked with securing oil facilities in Niger, and Al Jazeera’s Qatari correspondent reported that the mission would be a first precedent since the October 1973 war. An Anadolu Ajansı report said the mission involves sending an army “detachment” to secure oil projects belonging to the state energy company Sonatrach in Niger, at Niamey’s request, and it said neither the size of the proposed force nor its deployment date had been announced.
The BBC said the move followed months of strengthened security ties after an attempted coup in Niger in August, and it described Algeria donating four military helicopters to Niamey and earlier sending four Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jets and an aerial refuelling aircraft to Niamey. The BBC also said Niger has been governed by General Abdourahamane Tiani since a July 2023 coup that toppled elected President Mohamed Bazoum, who remains in detention, while it described the Sahel as a hotspot for armed groups and cited attacks on Niamey’s airport and a military airbase in January.