French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday that French troops in Niger will withdraw by the end of the year.
Amidst growing anti-French sentiment in the Sahel region, residents in the capital Niamey reacted to the news.
“The French military must leave immediately because we really don’t need them,” says Marzouk Doulla. “They’ve been saying they’d help us for decades, but we haven’t seen any change, so we don’t want their help.”
Sunday’s announcement comes after a two-month standoff between France and the military regime in Niger following July’s coup.
In the wake of the coup, anti-French protests spread through Niamey, with the French embassy attacked.
In late August, Niger’s new leaders ordered France’s ambassador to leave. On Sunday, Macron finally announced the immediate departure of the ambassador.
One resident said on Monday said he was “very, very happy” that the French were leaving, saying “we will have nothing to do with them again.”
