Does he miss the days when he was just the head of the presidential guard, working quietly behind the scenes without a care? Today in Niamey, the atmosphere inside the presidential palace has turned suffocating. A little over three years after the July 2023 coup, General Abdourahamane Tiani is confronting a painful truth: seizing power by force was a monumental mistake, and his own life now hangs in the balance.
Far from the grand speeches about national sovereignty, the head of the military junta is now trapped by the very army he commands.
Fear of assassination since the late August mutiny
The night of August 28-29, 2026 changed everything for General Tiani. That evening, rebellious soldiers from several garrisons stormed the air base and advanced dangerously close to the presidential palace. Barely saved by the swift intervention of Russian Africa Corps mercenaries, the president has lived in constant terror of being killed ever since.
His fear for his life is no longer a secret. Tiani barely leaves his hideout, his public appearances have been cancelled, and he remains holed up in a bunker, protected by foreign guards and a handful of soldiers he still trusts.
The costly mistake of dismissing General Barmou
In a bid to regain control, Tiani made a highly risky move in September 2026: he dismissed General Moussa Salaou Barmou, the chief of defence staff and a key figure behind the 2023 coup. Barmou was subsequently placed under house arrest.
But the decision backfired badly. General Barmou is widely respected and admired by elite troops. His removal was seen as a betrayal within the barracks. According to multiple sources, officers have issued virtual ultimatums to the junta: they demand an end to arrests within the military and threaten a massive uprising if the president continues his witch hunt.
A leader caged and threatened by his own soldiers
A former security specialist, Tiani understands exactly how a coup works. He knows that the greatest danger to him no longer comes from terrorist groups at the borders, but from his own soldiers.
It is the ultimate irony: toppling a civilian president in 2023 was easy, but running the country while constantly fearing a bullet from his own army has become a living nightmare. Today, General Tiani is no longer really trying to govern Niger — he is simply trying to survive.
