Gen Abdourahamane Tchiani
Niger’s military ruler has been sworn in as president for a transitional period of five years.
Tchiani has led the country since 2023, after he deposed Niger’s elected President, Mohamed Bazoum.
On Wednesday, Gen Tchiani took the presidential office under a new charter that replaces the West African country’s constitution.
He was also promoted to the country’s highest military rank of army general, and signed a decree ordering that all political parties be dissolved.
Niger and two other countries Mali and Burkina Faso, have severed ties with former colonial power France and forged new alliances with Russia.
They also pulled out of Ecowas, the West African regional bloc.
Niger’s relations with Ecowas broke down when the junta proposed a three-year transition period to democratic rule straight after the coup.
Ecowas called this plan a “provocation” and threatened to intervene with the use of force, before later backing down.
Gen Tchiani’s administration is prosecuting former President Bazoum on allegations of committing high treason and undermining national security.
Bazoum is still being held in the presidential palace with his wife, while his son was granted a provisional release last January.
