Algeria’s President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said in a television interview broadcast on 3 October that he sent fighter jets to Niger because he saw the 28–29 August mutiny in Niamey as a provocation against Algeria. Algeria deployed four Sukhoi Su-30 jets and a refuelling aircraft at Niger’s request on 30 August; Tebboune noted that Niger’s prime minister was in Algiers when the mutiny began. The deployment is a rare Algerian military operation abroad and marks a thaw with Niamey after the 2025 drone dispute with Mali strained Algeria’s ties with the Sahel juntas. It gives Algiers a security role alongside Russia, the juntas’ main military partner.
Sources
- Al Jazeera: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/3/algeria-sent-fighter-jets-to-niger-to-thwart-coup-attempt-president-says
- TSA Algérie: https://www.tsa-algerie.com/envoi-davions-au-niger-fmi-reserves-de-change-pouvoir-dachat-tebboune-sexprime/
- Africa Press: https://www.africa-press.net/en/policy/tebboune-jets-sent-to-niger-to-thwart-a-coup-attempt