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The ICRC confirmed the closure and departure in a statement on
Thursday.
“We reiterate our willingness to maintain constructive dialogue
with the authorities of Niger with a view to resuming our
strictly humanitarian protection and assistance activities,"
Patrick Youssef, the ICRC’s regional director for Africa, said
in the statement.
In February, Niger’s Foreign Affairs Ministry had ordered the
ICRC to close its offices and leave the country. No official
reason was given for the military junta’s decision to shut down
the organization's operations in the country at the time.
The ICRC said it had been in dialogue with Niger's authorities
since February to understand the reasons for their decision and
provide any necessary clarification but that these efforts were
unsuccessful.
On May 31, Niger’s junta leader, Abdourahamane Tchiani,
justified the ICRC expulsion on Nigerien state television,
accusing the organization of having met with “terrorist leaders”
and funding armed groups.
The ICRC refuted the accusations in its statement on Thursday,
saying that dialogue with all sides in the conflict is necessary
to carry out its humanitarian mandate and that it “never
provides financial, logistical, or any other form of support" to
armed groups.
The humanitarian organization had been active in the West
African country since 1990, mainly helping people displaced by
violence by Islamic extremists, food insecurity and natural
disasters. According to the organization, it provided
humanitarian aid to more than 2 million people in Niger.
Niger’s military rulers took power in a coup two years ago, the
latest of several military takeovers in Africa’s Sahel, the
vast, arid expanse south of the Sahara Desert that has become a
hotspot for extremist violence by militant groups.
Since the coup, Niger has pulled away from its Western partners,
such as France and the United States, turning instead to Russia
for security.
Last November, the country's military junta banned the French
aid group Acted from working in the country amid tensions with
France.
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