Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar has confirmed the continuous detention of 11 Nigerian military personnel in Burkina Faso following an emergency aircraft landing, Apples Bite Magazine has learnt.
Speaking to journalists at the ECOWAS Commission in Abuja on Thursday, Mr. Tuggar confirmed that diplomatic efforts are ongoing to secure the release of the detained soldiers.
“We are discussing how we can resolve this delicate matter as quickly as possible, and we’re talking. So it’s something that is being handled diplomatically,” the minister said during a joint press briefing.
The military officials were aboard a Nigerian Air Force C-130 aircraft that made an emergency landing in Bobo Dioulasso, southwestern Burkina Faso. They have been held amid suspicions of involvement in Nigeria’s recent intervention to prevent a coup in neighboring Benin Republic.
However, Mr. Tuggar firmly denied any connection between the aircraft landing and Nigeria’s role in thwarting the Benin coup attempt.
Burkina Faso’s Minister of Territorial Administration, Emile Zerbo, accused the aircraft of violating national procedures by entering the country’s airspace without proper authorization.
The Alliance of Sahel States (AES), comprising Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, has accused Nigeria of breaching Burkina Faso’s airspace, claiming the emergency landing constituted an infringement of national sovereignty.
The Nigerian Air Force has rejected these allegations, stating that the landing was conducted in accordance with standard safety procedures and international aviation protocols. According to the NAF, the C-130 crew observed a technical concern that necessitated a precautionary landing at Bobo Dioulasso, the nearest available airfield.
The incident occurred shortly after Nigerian military forces intervened in Benin Republic at the request of President Patrice Talon to help foil a coup attempt.
The AES member states, where military juntas have successfully seized power in recent years, withdrew from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) after the regional bloc condemned their coups and imposed sanctions.
As diplomatic negotiations continue, the fate of the detained Nigerian soldiers remains uncertain, with both countries working through diplomatic channels to resolve the matter.
