Niger's military junta closed the country's airspace on Sunday after rejecting a deadline to reinstate the ousted president. This comes as the West African regional bloc Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) threatened the new regime with military intervention.
"In the face of the threat of intervention that is becoming more apparent ... Nigerien airspace is closed effective from today," a junta representative said in a statement, adding that two Central African countries pre-deployed forces in preparation for an intervention
"Niger's armed forces and all our defence and security forces, backed by the unfailing support of our people, are ready to defend the integrity of our territory," he said, referring to thousands of junta supporters who flocked to a stadium in Niger's capital Niamey, cheering the decision not to cave in to external pressure to stand down.
Earlier, some of the ECOWAS countries agreed to a possible military action plan, including when and where to strike, if the detained president, Mohamed Bazoum, is not released and reinstated by the deadline.
The ECOWAS bloc's military threat has sparked fears of further conflict in a region already battling the deadly Islamist insurgency. Niger's uranium and oil riches and its pivotal role in a war with Islamist militants makes it important for the US, Europe, China and Russia.
Niger's former coloniser France has backed ECOWAS's military intervention plan. Niger last week revoked military cooperation agreements with France, which has between 1,000 and 1,500 troops in the country, according to Reuters.