Niger's defense ministry says soldiers attempted mutiny

BREAKING: Niger's defence ministry says soldiers attempted a mutiny, shooting at 'sensitive' sites in Niamey and taking hostages at a base near the airport, in the latest threat to junta leader Abdourahamane Tchiani.

Soldiers turned their guns on their own government in Niger overnight.

Gunfire and explosions ran through Niamey from around one in the morning until daybreak. The defence ministry says a group of soldiers attempted a mutiny, shooting at what it called sensitive sites. They hit Diori Hamani International Airport, which doubles as a military air base, took soldiers hostage at a base nearby, and tried to breach the perimeter around the presidency itself.

This is aimed at junta leader Abdourahamane Tchiani, the general who seized power in a coup back in 2023. His government says the situation is under control and told people to go about their business. But national television went dark for an hour on Saturday morning, and that tells its own story.

Niamey has already been attacked twice this year by rival jihadist groups. Now the threat came from inside the barracks. When a junta's own soldiers start shooting, control is exactly the thing in question.

This is Sara White, reporting for HIT.