DOZENS of soldiers were killed or arrested after troops attempted a mutiny in Niger’s capital, according to a television report.

It was the culmination of nearly 24 hours of unrest that appeared to be staged by soldiers aggrieved over the worsening militant violence under the country’s military rulers.

The RTN news network broadcast footage of dozens of mostly young soldiers being paraded in public after sustained gunfire and explosions were heard overnight into Saturday at a key military base located within Niamey’s main airport and near the presidential palace.

“The fighting lasted a few hours in several places, which allowed [security forces] to gradually control the situation, arrest and incapacitate these disgruntled soldiers,” according to local TV reports.

The rebelling soldiers had camped at the military base until late Saturday while the presidential guard secured the presidential palace and was deployed to regain control of the base, analysts and diplomats said.

In a statement broadcast on national television, Niger’s Defence Minister General Salifou Mody said a group of soldiers took some officers hostage at the base and shot at “sensitive sites” in a “break with the discipline and military regulations.”

The airport is a strategic hub that hosts a Nigerien air force base as well as the headquarters of the joint Niger-Burkina Faso-Mali military force.

Niger’s military rulers came to power after a 2023 coup which it said was prompted by the elected government’s inability to stem armed violence.

Since then, the impoverished west African country of more than 25 million people has severed ties with France, its former colonial ruler.

The ruling military council, known as the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland, called for unity. 

“Our defence and security forces are mobilised for the defence of the fatherland. Let us remain united, vigilant and supportive,” it said in a Facebook post.