On 1 April, Niger’s military junta released around 50 individuals detained following the July 2023 coup, including former ministers, a diplomat, a journalist, and soldiers accused in a past coup attempt. However, prominent figures such as ousted President Mohamed Bazoum and his wife remain in detention, despite international and domestic appeals for their release. The releases followed February recommendations from a national conference, but critics say they fall short of addressing wider rights concerns. Civil society groups, including the National Alliance for the Defence of Freedoms (l’Association Nigérienne de Lutte contre la Corruption, ANLC), have condemned ongoing politically motivated detentions and called for the release of all political prisoners. The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has also urged the immediate release of Bazoum and his wife, stating their continued detention violates international law.

Sources: ActuNiger, Human Rights Watch (1), Human Rights Watch (2), France 24, British Broadcasting Corporation, International IDEA

On 26 March, Niger’s junta leader Abdourahamane Tchiani was sworn in as transitional president, formalising a "flexible" five-year transition plan recommended by a national conference in February. This plan was codified in a new transition charter– replacing the constitution –which allows for extensions to the transition timeline depending on the security situation. As part of the plan, the junta dissolved all existing political parties and granted amnesty to participants in the 2023 coup. Also on 26 March, Tchiani was exceptionally promoted from brigadier general to army general. On 1 April, authorities announced the release of around 50 detainees, including former ministers from the ousted government, a diplomat, a journalist, and soldiers linked to past coup attempts. Former president Mohamed Bazoum, however, remains in detention despite repeated international appeals for his release.

Sources: African Press Agency, International IDEA, France 24, Jeune Afrique, The Associated Press

On 20 February, a national commission tasked with planning Niger’s transition to civilian government submitted its recommendations to the ruling junta. The commission consulted more than 700 delegates including lawyers, architects and teachers, though not political parties, who boycotted the process. The recommendations include a minimum five-year transition to civilian rule, the dissolution of all existing political parties and new rules that limit the number of political parties to five. The commission also proposed drafting a new constitution and granting amnesty to all participants in the 2023 coup. Further, it suggested allowing junta officials, including leader Brig. Gen. Abdourahamane Tchiani, to contest future elections. Tchiani welcomed the recommendations and pledged to support them, but the junta has yet to decide whether to formally adopt the plan and set the official transition timeline.

Sources: ActuNiger, Reuters, AP News, Human Rights Watch, Radio France Internationale (1), Radio France Internationale (2)

Niger’s junta has intensified restrictions on humanitarian organizations, ordering the closure of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) offices and expelling its expatriate staff on 4 February. The government formally terminated its agreements with the humanitarian organization but provided no official explanation. The ICRC had operated in Niger for 35 years, assisting victims of violence in conflict-affected regions – providing healthcare services to more than 120,000 people in 2024 alone. The ICRC is not the only humanitarian organization to have had its license revoked. On 12 November 2024, the French NGO Acted and its Nigerien partner APBE (Action for Well-being) also lost their authorization without any stated justification. Civic space in Niger has continued to shrink, with authorities increasingly citing national sovereignty to justify the tightening of controls on humanitarian and civil society organizations.  

Sources: Aïr Info, Radio France Internationale, Jeune Afrique

On 12 December, Niger’s military junta suspended the British Broadcasting Corporation’s (BBC) radio broadcasts in the country for three months, citing its alleged role in disseminating information that could “destabilize social order and demoralize the military”. BBC programmes, aired via local radio partners in Hausa and French, reached a wide audience. While authorities provided no further details of their allegations, the suspension follows BBC reports on jihadist attacks in the Tillabéri region in early December, which reportedly left 91 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians dead. Though radio broadcasts are suspended, the BBC website remains accessible, and shortwave transmissions continue. The decision expands previous media restrictions on domestic as well as French outlets such as France 24 and Radio France Internationale (RFI). Press freedom groups condemned the suspension, warning of increasing repression of independent journalism under military rule.

Sources: Le Sahel, British Broadcasting Corporation, The Associated Press, The International Federation of Journalists