Approximately 130 Belgians, European citizens and their dependents have been repatriated from Niger since the military coup in July that overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum.
With support from the Belgian Defence, the Foreign Affairs Ministry sent an A400M millitary transport plane which has been carrying out multiple round trips in recent weeks between Niamey, the capital of Niger, and Libreville, the capital of Gabon, before then departing for Belgium.
The A400M returned to Melsbroek military airport during the early hours of Sunday.
The operation has been praised by Defence Minister, Ludivine Dedonder, who expressed her satisfaction that the defence forces could contribute significantly to this successful repatriation operation.
Since the military coup on 26th July, a total of 240 Belgians, European citizens and their dependents have been repatriated.
