Algeria to host regional terror conference on Tuesday

2010-03-13T12:15:35Z

<div><p>Algeria is to host foreign ministers from the Sahara and Sahel on Tuesday for talks on fighting "a resurgence" in acts of terror, the Algerian Foreign Ministry said Saturday.</p><p>Ministers from Burkina Faso, NIAMEY (Reuters) - The new junta ruling in Niger, one of the world's biggest uranium producers, should review and possibly renegotiate dozens of resource exploitation contracts, civil rights groups said on Saturday.</p><p>The West African state, which produces 7.5 percent of the world's uranium, has a longstanding ...

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claims Niger attack

2010-03-12T12:15:56Z

<div><p>Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed Friday a suicide bombing raid on a military outpost in western Niger earlier this week that killed five soldiers and three attackers, monitors said.</p><p>A Malian security source had previously singled out the Algerian extremist group that has aligned itself with

African Union wants Niger President freed

2010-03-11T11:16:17Z

<div><p>The African Union wants Niger's military junta to free President Mamadou Tandja, overthrown in a February 18 coup, the body's peace and security chief Ramtane Lamamra said Thursday.</p><p>"It's a constant source of preoccupation for the AU... it's both a moral and a political obligation," Lamamra said after...

Desert dangers force Niger tourism south

2010-03-11T05:00:06Z

<div><p>LAMANTIN ISLAND, Niger (Reuters) - Joel Sauze was just readying his new eco-lodge in southern Niger for its first visitors as soldiers in the capital blasted their way into the presidential palace and arrested the country's leader.</p><p>Reinforcing a view of Niger's perils, the country's latest coup could ...

Niger appeals for emergency food aid

2010-03-10T11:16:04Z

<div><p>The government in Niger on Wednesday appealed for massive emergency aid to avert a food crisis that threatens more than half of the population of the arid west African country.</p><p>"To the national and international community, I want to launch an emergency appeal for massive support to the enormous efforts Niger is making to cope with famine," Prime Minister Maham...

Eight dead in Niger attack: government

2010-03-09T14:16:35Z

<div><p>Five soldiers and three attackers were killed in a skirmish at a military post in western Niger, the country's government said on Tuesday.</p><p>A Malian security source said members of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) were behind the attack, which happened close to the Niger-Mali border between 6:00 ...

Mixed reactions meet Niger's transition government

2010-03-02T11:16:24Z

<div><p>Niger nationals on Tuesday expressed mixed feelings over the make-up of a transition government which includes soldiers and several new civilian faces, announced the previous day.</p><p>The 20-member cabinet, which includes five senior army officers, will run the vast, dirt-poor but uranium-rich west African country for a transitional period, paving the way for a return to democracy.</p><p>The new government ha...

Niger junta names transitional government

2010-03-02T02:45:06Z

<div id="subtitle">Niger junta names 20 ministers to a new transitional government nearly 2 weeks after coup</div><div><p>Niger's military junta has announced new transitional government nearly two weeks after seizing power in the West African nation.</p><p>State television says coup chief Maj. Salou Djibou signed a decree appointing 20 ministers on Monday. Five of the posts went to women and five to officers.</p>...

Niger junta names five officers in new cabinet

2010-03-01T15:15:58Z

<div><p>The military junta in Niger on Monday formed a new transitional government of 20 ministers, including five soldiers and five women, according to an official statement read on state radio.</p><p>The defence, sport and environment portfolios went to three generals close to toppled president Mamadou Tandja, the statement from the Supreme Council for Restoration of De...

Niger facing famine, millions at risk: president

2010-02-28T14:15:08Z

<div><p>NIAMEY (Reuters) - Millions of people are threatened by famine in Niger, the new military ruler said on Sunday in a message that contrasted starkly with his predecessor's reluctance to talk about food shortages.</p><p>Major Salou Djibo, who ousted President Ma...

Niger junta pledges to stay out of presidential polls

2010-02-28T13:16:02Z

<div><p>Niger's new military leader pledged on Sunday that no member of the junta that seized power in a coup this month will stand in the presidential elections it has promised to hold.</p><p>"To ensure a serene and impartial transition, we pledge that no member of the Supreme Council or of the transition government will be a candidate in the coming presidential elections," junta leader Salou Djibo said on state radio.</p>&...

Niger: Once-taboo topic of hunger spoken again

2010-02-26T14:31:08Z

<div id="subtitle">In Niger, opening once-taboo topic of hunger crucial to easing impending food crisis</div><div><p>They are simple words humanitarian workers in Africa use often but dared not speak in this impoverished nation: hunger, starvation.</p><p>And definitely not famine.</p><p>For years, President M...

Nigerian acting president meets Niger junta delegation

2010-02-25T16:17:15Z

<div><p>Nigerian Acting President Goodluck Jonathan Thursday met a delegation of the junta in Niger and urged the soldiers to have "a very short transition", an official said.</p><p>"The message that the acting president passed to them is very clear. That they must have a very short transition and conduct elections as so...

One-fifth of Chad's population facing hunger

2010-02-25T14:31:07Z

<div><p>N'DJAMENA (Reuters) - Nearly a fifth of the population in Chad will suffer food shortages this year, part of a broader hunger problem looming in the Sahel region, the United Nations said Thursday.</p><p>"Two million

Niger junta delegation in west African tour

2010-02-25T08:16:22Z

<div><p>A delegation of the junta in Niger on Thursday began a tour of several west African countries, exactly a week after it came to power after ousting President Mamadou Tandja, state radio reported.</p><p>Junta leader Major Salou Djibo, proclaimed head of state late Monday, "has mandated Colonel Hassane Mossi t...

New Niger leader says will press junta on poll timeframe

2010-02-24T14:17:10Z

<div><p>Niger's newly-appointed civilian prime minister said Wednesday he had asked his military bosses for guarantees on a return to real democratic rule and said a new government of "technocrats" would be in place soon.</p><p>"I have asked for the necessary guarantees to be sure of committing myself in the process leading to a real restoration of democracy," said Mahamadou Danda, in his first public comments since his appointmen...

New Niger leader 'to press junta on poll timeframe'

2010-02-24T14:17:09Z

<div><p>Niger's newly-appointed civilian prime minister said Wednesday he had asked his military bosses for guarantees that they will return the west African uranium exporter to "real" democratic rule.</p><p>"I have asked for the necessary guarantees to be sure of committing myself in the process leading to a real restoration of democracy," said Mahamadou Danda, in his first public comments since his appointment.</p><p>...

Niger junta seeks political cleanup, elections

2010-02-24T08:45:19Z

<div><p>NIAMEY (Reuters) - The priorities of Niger's military junta are to clean up politics and restore democracy by holding transparent elections, a junta spokesman said on Wednesday.</p><p>The junta, which calls itself the Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy (CSRD), overthrew

New Niger leader urges guarantees from military

2010-02-24T06:16:20Z

<div><p>Niger's newly-appointed civilian prime minister said Wednesday he had asked his military bosses for guarantees that they will return the west African uranium exporter to "real" democratic rule.</p><p>"I have asked for the necessary guarantees to be sure of committing myself in the process leading to a real restoration of democracy," said Mahamadou Danda.</p><p>The guarantees include as precise a timeline as pos...

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