Hommam Al Nassim 
Niger’s army announced that France completed on Friday the withdrawal of its troops, ending its military deployment in the country.
“Today marked the end of the process of disengaging French forces in the Sahel region, where they remained for almost 10 years as part of a counter-terrorism operation,” military spokesman Salim Ibrahim said.
As part of the disengagement, France transported about 1,500 troops on 145 flights and 15 land convoys, Ibrahim said.
The presence of the French army in Niger was organized under several military cooperation agreements, most notably the first agreement signed in 2012, and in 2022, after the withdrawal of French troops from Mali, President Mohamed Bazoum asked Paris to deploy additional forces in western Niger to combat hotbeds of terrorism.
On July 26, Niger witnessed a military coup, with a group of presidential guards ousting Bazoum and announcing the formation of a National Council for the Protection of the Homeland headed by Abderrahmane Chiani, who on August 10 signed a decree to form a transitional government.
The rebels demanded the expulsion of the French ambassador and announced the cancellation of military agreements with France and demanded that Paris withdraw its troops.
France decided in September to withdraw its ambassador and, despite stressing its respect for the demands of the legitimate authorities in Niger, decided at the end of September to withdraw its troops.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced in late September that French troops would leave Niger by the end of 2023, and the withdrawal process began in late October, with French army units handing over a military base in the city of Walam to be under the control of the Nigerien military, a strategic area bordering Mali.
In addition to Niger, France has withdrawn troops from Burkina Faso and Mali, which are also ruled by the military.