The military in Niger has warned ECOWAS against the deployment of forces in the country following the overthrow of President Mohammed Bazoum following a coup d’état last week.

The warning comes after ECOWAS decided to deploy military forces in Niger next week if the toppled President, Mohammed Bazoum is not reinstated by the presidential guard.

However, Chiefs of Defence Staff from ECOWAS say they have been left with no option but to confront head-on the increasing spate of military takeovers taking centre-stage in West Africa.

The West African body has converged in Abuja for a crisis meeting.

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The Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security at the ECOWAS Commission, Ambassador Abdel Fatah Musah says it is worrying that terrorism has implanted itself in the West Africa Sub Region.

He also says the trend is growing towards the coastal states.

“In the past three years or so we’ve had about eight successful and unsuccessful coups in the West Africa region and the reasons are multi-faceted.”

“Terrorism has implanted itself in our Sub-region and as you are in Accra, you know the situation of refugees in the northern part of Ghana today, Benin is even targeted, Togo is targeted, Côte d'Ivoire is targeted, so terrorism is descending towards the coastal state of the Gulf of Guinea,” he said.