This was on the boil for a few days, but on Saturday our time, General Abdourahmane Tchiani, the head of Niger’s presidential guard, declared himself the leader of the West African nation. That followed the detention of the nation’s democratically elected president Mohamed Bazoum mid-last week. Leading a group called the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Country, Tchiani said the government’s failure to tackle Islamist insurgents, corruption, and economic woes led him to seize power. Analysts say it’s about Bazoum wanting to replace Tchiani in his role in the presidential guard and tensions within the armed forces. Niger was the final domino to fall with military rulers now controlling a belt of 6 countries across Africa. Niger has been an important American and French ally in the region – both have cut off their financial support. That will be a heavy blow to one of the world’s poorest countries.