Posts falsely claim video shows French ambassador forced from embassy in Niger
- Published on September 15, 2023 at 15:29
- 5 min read
- By Erin FLANAGAN
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"Niger have finally arrested the French ambassador from their country and ready for deportation back to France (sic)," reads a TikTok post published on September 14, 2023.
Viewed more than 14,000 times, the now deleted 45-second clip shows a crowd filmed outside a building chanting "thief" in French and booing as a group of soldiers lead a man through the throng.
The man enters a car, which drives away as the crowd cheers.
A second video circulating on X with the same claim shows the incident from a different angle.
The minute-long video is filmed above the crowd from inside the building.
Similar claims also circulated in other posts on X (formerly Twitter) and on Facebook.
Niger coup
On July 26, 2023, Niger’s presidential guard staged a coup, ousting Mohamed Bazoum, the country’s democratically elected president (archived here).
Relations between Niger and France, the country’s former colonial power, went swiftly downhill after Paris stood by Bazoum (archived here).
On August 25, the junta announced the immediate "expulsion" of the French ambassador to Niger, Sylvain Itte, giving him 48 hours to leave the country (archived here).
In response, France said Niger’s junta had "no authority" to make this demand and ignored the deadline given by the military leaders.
However, the claim that the video shows Nigerien soldiers forcibly removing the French ambassador from the embassy is false.
Gabon, not Niger
In the first video circulating on TikTok, the man is seen being escorted out of a building atrium with large windows and a distinct brown column.
Using a reverse image search, AFP Fact Check found that the building is Gabon’s Ministry of Water and Forest in the country’s capital, Libreville (archived here).
The ministry has the same rounded glass front and large brown columns as the building in the TikTok footage.
Two rounded objects are also reflected in the glass, resembling the tree-like poles outside the ministry.
The video posted to Twitter from a different angle more clearly shows the tree-inspired structures.
A second building with a distinct circular shape and white concrete outcroppings is visible in the TikTok clip beginning at 0'37".
Using geolocation techniques, AFP Fact Check found that the second building in the TikTok clip is across the street from the ministry and has the same circular shape and unmistakable design.
A keyword search confirms that the second building is the Ministry of Mines, Industry, and Tourism in Libreville, Gabon (archived here).
Controversial minister
Using a social media search for "ministry of water Gabon" in French, AFP Fact Check found users sharing the same video as the one circulating on TikTok, but this time claiming it showed Gabonese soldiers escorting former environment minister Lee White from Gabon’s Ministry for Water and Forests.
Lee White, a British-Gabonese citizen, was appointed as the country’s minister of forests in 2019 by longtime leader Ali Bongo (archived here).
Bongo was placed under house arrest following a military coup in Gabon on August 30, 2023.
By searching in AFP’s photo archives, AFP Fact Check confirmed that the man in the video being escorted by soldiers is indeed Lee White.
Lee is a controversial figure in Gabon for his close ties with Bongo and the tension between his conservationist policies and the country’s forestry sector (archived here).
According to a French-language news report, White was arrested on September 13, 2023, for alleged corruption and embezzlement (archived here).
French ambassador
As of publication, Sylvain Itte remains in Niger following a late August announcement by French President Emmanuel Macron that the ambassador would stay at his post despite pressure to leave (archived here).
Nigerien Prime Minister Mahaman Lamine Zeine said they would not send police into the embassy but warned that the ambassador would be considered to be in the country illegally.
AFP Fact Check has debunked several false claims about the recent spate of coups in Africa. You can follow our coverage here.
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