Nigerian soldiers aboard a military aircraft that made a forced landing in Burkina Faso earlier this week remain in the country, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, confirmed on Thursday.
Tuggar disclosed this during a joint press briefing with his Beninese counterpart, Olushegun Bakari, at the ECOWAS Commission headquarters in Abuja, while responding to questions from TheCable about the status of the 11 military personnel onboard the aircraft.
The incident occurred on Monday after the Confederation of Sahel States (AES)—comprising Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger—accused a Nigerian Air Force (NAF) C-130 aircraft of violating Burkinabe airspace. The bloc, led by military juntas in the three countries, described the landing as hostile, with Mali’s transitional leader, Assimi Goita, calling it an “unfriendly act” and a breach of international law.
Following the accusation, the AES authorised its member states to “neutralise” any aircraft considered to be violating their airspace.
The diplomatic tension coincided with Nigeria’s air support to Benin Republic to foil an attempted coup, further complicating the regional atmosphere.
In its explanation, the Nigerian Air Force said the aircraft was en route to Portugal on a ferry mission when the crew detected a technical fault. NAF spokesperson Ehimen Ejodame stated that the pilots carried out a precautionary landing in Bobo-Dioulasso—the nearest available airfield—in line with international aviation safety protocols.
