Ousted Niger President's Desperate Struggle for Peace Amidst Hunger

The democratically elected president of Niger, Mohamed Bazoum, has revealed that he is being isolated and forced to eat dry rice and pasta by the military junta that overthrew him and refuses to relinquish power. Despite international pressure, hopes for a peaceful resolution to the coup are fading. Bazoum has been living without electricity for a week and is deprived of human contact, food, and medicine. While he was denied the chance to speak with the acting US Deputy Secretary of State, he did have a phone conversation with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. A meeting between the junta and representatives from the United Nations and ECOWAS was canceled, but the junta expressed a desire to continue dialogue. ECOWAS leaders are set to meet on Thursday to discuss the coup, with the possibility of using force to restore constitutional order.