Soldiers seize President Tandja in coup (Niger -- uranium exporter)

[FarCenter]

Niger troops stormed the presidency complex amid deadly gunbattles in Niamey on Thursday and seized President Mamadou Tandja and his cabinet in a coup d'Etat, diplomats said.

Gunfire and loud explosions reverberated across the city as soldiers assaulted the palace where Tandja, the country's strongman for the past decade, presided over a cabinet meeting.

A French diplomat said Tandja's own presidential guard took part in the coup.

"It happened after a cabinet meeting. It would appear that President Tandja is currently in the hands of the rebels and that the members of the government are themselves held," the diplomat said.

An African diplomat based in the world's third-biggest uranium producer confirmed the capture, saying several senior government figures had been arrested.

"Tandja is among them. The rebels have taken the upper hand," he said.

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As Yates explained, Niger’s status as one of the world’s biggest uranium producers is a key factor in the political turmoil that has gripped the country, coming to a head on Thursday. “The real prize here is the big uranium contracts,” Yates noted. “Niger is a uranium-dependent country. Most of its trade with the outside world is selling its uranium..<...>..These kinds of contracts have signature bonuses, they also have terms that are negotiated. So he who controls the presidential palace also controls the uranium revenues.”

http://www.france24.com/en/20100218-niger-gunfire-erupts-niamey-smoke-rising-presidential-palace