finished the evacuation of its citizens from niger after last week s military coup. officials say more than 1,000 people have been airlifted out of niger including nationals from a number of other countries. us presidentjoe biden has called for the former head of state to be returned to power. in the capital niamey a crowd of protesters have gathered in support of the coup. 0n the anniversary of the country s independence from france a coalition of organisations denounced the sanctions imposed on niger by the west african regional bloc ecowas. 0ur africa correspondent catherine byaruhanga says anti french sentiment is running high among the demonstrators in niamey. we have had the first images of these crowds gathering, the demonstrations happening in niamey at the moment. and it looks like it s mostly young men, the gathering at the independence square in the capital there. obviously, it s independence day in niger, as you mentioned. and the scenes are quite peaceful. you
now rubbing their hands and hoping that they can profit from it, as they ve done in mali and other countries. basically the kremlin s dealers we send in mercenaries to back up totalitarian regimes and dodgy military thugs and so on, in return the kremlin gets concessions for gold and mining. it s good for the elites in africa, it s good for corrupt generals, it s good for the kremlin, but it s very, very bad news for millions of africans in countries that are weak and increasingly unstable. qm. countries that are weak and increasingly unstable. 0k, andrew, thank ou increasingly unstable. ok, andrew, thank you for increasingly unstable. 0k, andrew, thank you for that, increasingly unstable. 0k, andrew, thank you for that, andrew - increasingly unstable. 0k, andrew, thank you for that, andrew harding | thank you for that, andrew harding reporting live for is there. there 5 growing concern over one of the middle east s most sensitive frontiers, the border between israel and lebanon. th
of the year. the general behind this week s military coup in the west african state of niger has now declared himself head of state. general abdourahmane tchiani, also known as 0mar tchiani, ousted the democratically elected president, mohamed bazoum, on wednesday. he s now being held captive by his own guards, and was considered a key ally of the west in the fight against islamist militants in the region. the eu, the african union, and the un have roundly condemned his ousting, which follows days of unrest in the capital, and there are now concerns the new leader could align more closely with russia, as has happened with niger s neighbours, burkina faso and mali. 0ur africa correspondent andrew harding joins me. andrew, just how worried should the west be? i
a very clear message that we would like this war to be ended. we say so because this war is having a negative impact on the african continent and indeed on many other countries around the world. 0ur africa reporter shingai nyoka is in the zimbabwe capital, harare, and has more on the visit. those leaders of those seven countries, or representatives from seven countries, met with president putin and essentially expressed concern about the stability of the region. stability in the region. and they called on him to ensure that there s stability in the region. they also expressed concern
you re live with bbc news. we will bring you the latest on what is happening in sudan. conditions in sudan appear to be worsening, as representatives of the country s rival military factions continue ceasefire talks in saudi arabia. reports from the capital, khartoum, suggest that looting has become so severe that it s causing shortages of basic supplies. members of the paramilitary rapid support forces have been seen breaking into banks. the un agency for refugees is warning of a growing crisis, with more than 40,000 people having fled into neighbouring south sudan. 0ur africa correspondent catherine byaruhanga sent this report from renk on the sudanese border. day and night, the mass movement of people out of sudan continues. a conflict now