A video viewed hundreds of thousands of times purports to show an African leader violently criticising ECOWAS for imposing a strict ultimatum on the Niger junta. In reality, this video dates from 2022 and shows a Gambian leader protesting against ECOWAS’ intention to create an “anti-coup” unit.
If you only have a minute
- A video of a political speech was shared on social media, with captions saying that it shows an African leader criticising the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) over threat of intervention in response to the recent coup in Niger.
- In fact, the video shows a Gambian official denouncing ECOWAS's intention to set up an anti-coup unit in 2022 – an initiative that was never carried out.
The fact-check, in detail
On July 26, Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum was ousted in a military coup and General Abdourahamane Tiani proclaimed himself the leader of a newly formed military junta.
The junta rejected an ultimatum issued by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which urged them to restore constitutional order. West African leaders are set to hold a summit on Thursday to consider responses to the crisis.
Against this backdrop, a video claiming that an African leader had criticised ECOWAS's hardline policy towards the junta in Niger went viral.
“Africa Leader Blasts ECOWAS Over Coup In Niger” claims this Facebook page, sharing a video of a man dressed in a white outfit speaking at an official meeting.
“Before setting up an anti-coup d’état unit in ECOWAS, it is time that the African heads of state or the ECOWAS heads of states look into the reasons why there are coups d’état. This unit is set up to protect them only, nobody else,” says the man in the video.
The video garnered more than 524,000 views on Facebook since August 1. The post garnered more than a thousand comments, including messages of support from people all over Africa.
A video filmed before the coup in Niger
However, when we searched using the keywords “anti-coup unit” and “ECOWAS” on Google, we pulled up a report from the Gambian media outlet The Point, titled “GDC leader urges IEC not to “destabilise” the nation”.
The article explains that Mamma Kandeh, the secretary-general and party leader of Gambia Democratic Congress, denounced ECOWAS’ intention to create an anti-coup unit during a party meeting in Jarra Soma on December 25, 2022.
In July 2022, ECOWAS proposed the creation of a force to restore constitutional order in the event of a coup d'état, but this initiative was not implemented.
If you search for images of the event on Facebook, you can find the original video of his speech. It was published in December 25, 2022 on the Facebook page of Gambian media Kerr Fatou.
In 2017, ECOWAS carried out a military intervention in the Gambia to restore constitutional order after President Yahya Jammeh refused to step down after his loss in the 2016 presidential election.
Niger and ECOWAS remain at an impasse, as the Nigerien junta continues to refuse to relinquish power. Across Africa, many have expressed their hostility to a military intervention in Niger, which could set off a regional conflict.
The video shows a Gambian leader criticising ECOWAS for its intention to create an anti-coup unit, but this is not a direct criticism of the regional blocs' response to the crisis in Niger.
