the French ambassador in Niamey is “taken hostage”, declares Emmanuel Macron

Emmanuel Macron announced, Friday September 15, that the French ambassador to Niger, Sylvain Itté, had been taken into custody. “hostage” by the soldiers who overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum and took power on July 26. “In Niger, as I speak to you, we have an ambassador and diplomatic members who are literally taken hostage at the French embassy”declared the Head of State during a trip to Semur-en-Auxois (Côte-d’Or).

“We are preventing the delivery of food. He eats with military rations”he added. The ambassador did not “no longer able to go out, he is persona non grata and we refuse to allow him to eat”, insisted Emmanuel Macron. Asked about a possible repatriation of the ambassador to Paris, the head of state reiterated: “I will do what we agree with the president [Mohamed] Bazoum because he is the legitimate authority and I talk to him every day.”

Asked about the situation of the ambassador, the Minister of Foreign Affairs stated that Sylvain Itté “work” and that he will remain in office “as long as we want him to stay”. “It is a decision that belongs to the President of the Republic”insisted Catherine Colonna on LCI. The ambassador “is very useful to us through his contacts, through those of his team, there is still a small team around him”she added.