West Africa in yet another attempt to negotiate with coup leaders in Niger

(Patria) - The West African bloc ECOWAS aims to send a parliamentary committee to Niger to meet
with the coup leaders, the bloc's spokesperson said, Reuters reported.

The Nigerien army last month detained President Mohamed Bazoum and dissolved the elected government, drawing condemnation from regional powers who have activated reserve military forces they say will be deployed as a last resort if negotiations fail.

However, the coup leaders, led by General Abdourahamane Tchiani, have rejected diplomatic efforts by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the United States, and others, raising the chances of further conflict in the impoverished Sahel region of West Africa, which is already awash in a deadly Islamist insurgency.

The ECOWAS Parliament met on Saturday to discuss further actions in Niger. No decision was made, but the parliament established a committee that plans to meet with Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who is the ECOWAS chair, to get his permission to go to Niger, a spokesperson said.

A group of prominent Nigerian Islamic scholars also met with Tinubu to get the green light for an intervention, which Tinubu approved, a source close to the Nigerian president said on Saturday. It was not clear if they were already in Niger, but their plan was to meet with their counterparts in Niger to smooth over the diplomatic stalemate.