Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso Leave ECOWAS, Accusing It of ‘Inhumane’ Sanctions

The sanctions were imposed after soldiers seized power in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.

Military juntas in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso said they were withdrawing from the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS, because of sanctions the group imposed in response to the coups that were carried out.

In recent years, a string of coups have erupted across the Sahel, the arid strip south of the Sahara, forming an unbroken strip of military-run countries stretching coast to coast across the continent.

While attempts by the regional bloc to reverse some of these coups have failed, the sanctions it imposed — closing borders and cutting the three landlocked countries off from major trading partners — have endured, causing intense hardship for millions of people.

On Sunday, the three juntas said these sanctions were “inhumane.”

ECOWAS closed land and air borders, imposed a no-fly zone for commercial flights, suspended financial transactions and froze assets the countries held in ECOWAS central banks.

🔗Source: NYT, BBC

Related: 9/17 — Congo Basin Poses the Highest Risk for Africa’s Next Coup

"Three countries in Central Africa’s Congo Basin are being closely watched for the possibility of a future political upheaval or coups after the fall of the Bongo dynasty in neighboring Gabon...

Like with the most recent West African coups in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, and Niger, five of the six Congo Basin countries are Francophone. One of the common themes in West Africa has been strong anti-French populist rhetoric by the coup leaders."

9/10 — Niger Coup Sanctions Drive Ghana’s Onion Prices Up, Deepen Food Crisis

8/30 — ECOWAS Sanctions Preventing Food and Aid Deliveries to Niger

8/15 — Power Cuts Worsen in Niger Following Sanctions from ECOWAS

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