France evacuates citizens from Niger after neighbours warn of war

FILE PHOTO: Nigerien security forces launch tear gas to disperse pro-junta demonstrators gathered outside the French embassy, in Niamey, the capital city of Niger July 30, 2023. REUTERS/Souleymane Ag Anara

PARIS (Reuters) - France began the evacuation of hundreds of French and European citizens from Niger on Tuesday, a day after neighbours Mali and Burkina Faso said any outside intervention to restore the ousted government would be seen as a declaration of war.

A military junta overthrew Niger's democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum and his government last Wednesday in the seventh military takeover in less than three years in West and Central Africa.