Niger's President Bazoum has been removed in coup

Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum has been removed from power.

That’s according to a group of soldiers who appeared on national TV late Wednesday.

Bazoum had been detained for hours by his own guards in the presidential palace.

An army spokesman, Colonel Amadou Abdramane, declared the West African nation’s borders were closed, a nationwide curfew was in place, and all institutions were suspended.

Security forces, according to Abdramane, decided to rebel due to the quote “deteriorating security situation and bad governance”.

Supporters of the ousted president Bazoum have been quick to condemn the army's action – gathering outside the national assembly in the capital Niamey to call for his release.

This man says he’s here to defend democracy. He added Bazoum was elected for five years, and democracy should prevail.

Niger is a key Western ally in a global fight against insurgencies in the Sahel region.

The coup now complicates international efforts to fight a jihadist movement that has spread from Mali over the past decade.

Bazoum's election was the first democratic transition of power in a state that has witnessed four military coups since independence from France in 1960.

The coup has sparked international condemnation, with the U.S. calling for Bazoum's release, while the European Union, United Nations, France and others have condemned the uprising.

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