Anti-US rally in Niger as junta deepens ties with Russia
Coordinated networks of social media pages from nearby Russia-aligned Mali amplified the anti-US rally.
Hundreds rallied in Niger’s capital, Niamey, demanding the withdrawal of US troops from the country while encouraging stronger ties with Russia and calling for a ‘respectful’ partnership with Moscow on 13 April 2024.
The rally was amplified online via several digital networks, the majority of which were based in neighbouring Mali, which has already solidified its relationship with the Kremlin.
Now, the US is officially pulling out troops from the country after the military junta which overthrew the sitting government — part of a wave of coups that have hit the region since 2020 — tore up a decades-long bilateral agreement in March.
The start of the US withdrawal is the culmination of a months-long digital information manipulation campaign in Niger. It coincides with the arrival of Russian military trainers bringing with them weapons and an anti-aircraft system earlier in April.
Though no Russian actors have been officially identified in Nigerien networks, the coordinated online operations mirror digital playbooks deployed across the Sahel. They all amplified negative news about Europe and the US in Africa, and had significant pro-Russian involvement.
These campaigns come as public disaffection increases with former sitting governments that were aligned with the West and have since been ousted.
April 2024: US Out
Eleven of the Facebook pages amplifying the anti-US rally stated that their administrators were based in Mali, two in France, three in Niger and one did not disclose its administrator’s location. According to the posts, 13 civil society organisations planned the event.
Three Facebook accounts administered from Niger posted on 17 April 2024 that citizens responded to the call for demonstrations from civil society organisations. The posts claimed that protestors expressed their dissatisfaction with the American military presence in the country, chanting slogans such as ‘The American army get out!’ and ‘we no longer want American soldiers in our country’.
The posts were accompanied by rally pictures, including protestors carrying Russian flags.
The Facebook pages used the copy-paste technique to amplify their message, generating more than 3,735 interactions.
Over the last decade, the US has spent about one billion dollars on at least two drone bases and a new embassy in Niger, CBS reported. The status of one of the bases, a $110 million project, is not known, according to the New York Times. It was built in the arid north of the country where many of the Americans are stationed. Adding further complexity, The Intercept reported that the US had trained at least five members of the regime that is now calling for its expulsion.
April 2024: Russia In
Just a day before the anti-US rally, Russian military trainers and equipment, including an anti-aircraft system, arrived in Niamey.
Three networks amplified the news of the delivery between 10 and 12 April 2024, two on Facebook and one on Telegram. Much of the campaign involved communicating inconsistent or even contradictory reporting on which Russian security actors had come and the purpose of their missions.
On 11 April 2024, Russian state-owned media outlet RIA Novosti’s Telegram channel posted a video about the arrival of Russian troops in Niamey. The video showed RIA Novosti correspondent Sasha Kharchenko covering the arrival of the instructors. Kharchenko interviewed some of them, though it is not clear if the instructors were from the Russian army of the newly created Africa Corps — the rehatted Wagner Group. The instructors said that their task in Niger was to train the Nigerien army to use the equipment. The video, which was forwarded to 25 Telegram channels, received 918,700 views.
On 12 April 2024, six Facebook pages amplified a post from Deutsche Welle (DW) Hausa’s Facebook page, which reported the news of military equipment landing in Niamey. Although the Facebook posts generated minimal traction, with just 459 interactions, the network served as a link to another network, amplifying the same content. The amplified posts stated that personnel from the Russian defence ministry accompanied the equipment.
However, another article had different information. It stated that these roughly 100 Russian instructors were from the Africa Corps.
A second network of seven Facebook accounts used the copy-paste technique to amplify a post about the arrival of the anti-aircraft surveillance system. The post claimed it would help Niger to protect its airspace and that it was part of the military cooperation between Russia and Niger. The post also highlighted the arrival of 100 Russian instructors reportedly installing the equipment and training the Nigerien army to operate it. The posts received 2,481 interactions. Of the seven accounts involved in this coordinated amplification, four are from Niger, two are from Burkina Faso, and one is from Côte d’Ivoire.
How did Niger get here
Discernible fissures became apparent when the Niger junta ousted the government in July 2023.
The French president Emmanuel Macron described the coup as ‘completely illegitimate and profoundly dangerous for the Nigeriens, Niger and the whole region.’
Similarly, the US condemned the coup in the hitherto Western-aligned Sahel country.
‘The vice president strongly condemned any efforts to seize power by force in Niger, and emphasised that our substantial cooperation with the government of Niger is contingent on Niger’s continued commitment to democratic standards,’ the White House said in a statement released the day after the coup.
In September 2023, tens of thousands of protesters gathered at the French military base in Niamey, demanding its army to leave the country. France has an estimated 1,500 troops in Niger. Its Niger base was one of two in the Sahel from where France runs its anti-terror initiative against Jihadists across the Sahel. It evacuated its other military base in Bamako, the capital of Mali, in the wake of the 2020 and 2022 coups in the country.
France eventually withdrew its troops from Niger in December 2023.
Between 19 and 22 January 2024, two cells comprising 28 Facebook accounts were involved in the coordinated amplification of narratives about Nigerien cooperation with Russia based on an article published by Radio France Internationale (RFI) on 18 January 2024.
The article, titled ‘Niger announces intensification of its military cooperation with Russia’, reported on Niger’s announcement of its military cooperation with Russia. However, the article did not mention any direct threats by the US government, as the coordinated posts claimed.
According to the article, US assistant secretary of state for African affairs Molly Phee stated that the partnership between Washington and Niamey remained on the table and provided assurance that she has no objections to countries diversifying their partnerships. However, she specified that if Niger chooses to partner with Russia, ‘it will be complicated’. Phee visited Niamey in early December 2023.
Between 21 and 22 January 2024, the first cell of six Facebook accounts used the copy-paste technique to amplify a purported announcement from the US government. It threatens consequences for Niger should it decide to cooperate with Russia militarily, as Mali has done. The accounts received ~1,800 comments, and the post was reshared 2,377 times. Three accounts involved in the coordination were administered from Mali, two from France, and one from Niger.
The post about this claim was originally made on the Facebook account of pro-Russian influencer Franklin Nyamsi, which has ~319,000 followers. Subsequently, the above posts were forwarded to 162 Facebook groups, resulting in 238 interactions. Of these 162 group posts, 136 featured a video of Nyamsi expressing anti-US sentiment and accusing the US of applying diplomatic pressure on Niger.
The second coordination took place between 19 and 20 January 2024. It involved a network of 22 accounts that used the copy-paste technique to amplify a post about Nigerien prime minister Ali Zeine’s visit to Moscow. According to the posts, the visit was geared towards deepening military and economic cooperation between Russia and Niger. The posts received 4,332 interactions.
Of the 22 coordinated Facebook pages, the top Facebook page admins were from Niger, with five, followed by Mali, with four, as shown in the chart below.
The US further declared an ‘unflagging’ support for the ousted president, Mohamed Bazoum.
Days after the coup, the junta accused France of plotting to ‘intervene militarily’ in Niger. This was preceded by protestors marching on the French Embassy in Niamey, chanting anti-French slogans and waving the Russian flag. This appears to be a spillover of strong anti-French sentiments from the neighbouring Sahel states of Burkina Faso and Mali
After months of these anti-US campaigns, the Niger junta announced the end of its military partnership with the US in March 2024. At that stage, the US had about 1000 personnel in the country.
‘The government of Niger, taking into account the aspirations and interests of its people, decides with full responsibility to denounce with immediate effect the agreement relating to the status of military personnel of the United States and civilian employees of the American Department of Defense in the territory of the Republic of Niger,’ Niger military spokesman colonel major Amadou Abdramane said in a statement.
Following the junta’s declaration, the Pentagon announced, ‘We want to see our partnership continue if there is a pathway forward.’ After months of digital campaigns, culminating in April’s rally and the arrival of Russian weapons and trainers, the situation has reached an impasse.
This report was written by CfA iLAB investigative fellow Amanda Sperber, with contributions by CfA iLAB senior investigative data analyst Peter Kimani. It was edited and reviewed by iLAB insights manager Nicholas Ibekwe, iLAB copy editor Karabo Kgoleng and iLAB managing editor Athandiwe Saba.
