Lieutenant General

Lieutenant General

Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....

 Salou Djibo (born 15 April 1965) is a Niger

Niger

Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...

ien military officer. Following the military coup of 18 February 2010, he became head of the Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy

Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy

The Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy , led by Salou Djibo, is a military junta that staged a coup in Niger on 18 February 2010, deposing President Mamadou Tandja...

 and thus de facto leader of Niger.

Early and family life

Salou Djibo was born in 1965 in Namaro

Namaro

Namaro is a village and rural commune in Niger.It is the birthplace of Salou Djibo, who took power in Niger in a military coup in February 2010.-References:...

, a village and rural commune in Niger close to the River Niger. He is of Zarma ancestry. Djibo is married and has five children.

Military career

In 1995, Djibo underwent military training in Bouaké

Bouaké

Bouaké is the second largest city in Côte d'Ivoire, with a population of 775,300 . It is the main urban settlement of the Bouaké Department with a population exceeding 1.2 million, in the Vallée du Bandama Region...

, Côte d'Ivoire

Côte d'Ivoire

The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...

 before commencing officer training in 1996. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant

Second Lieutenant

Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...

 in 1997 and gained further promotions to lieutenant

Lieutenant

A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

 in 1998, captain in 2003 and chef d'escadron

Chef d'escadron

In the French armed forces , Chef d'escadron is the title of a commandant in the Artillery and Baggage Train Corps and in the Gendarmerie....

 (major) in October 2006. Djibo has also received training in Morocco

Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...

 and China

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

.

Amongst Djibo's several posts, he was an instructor at the Agadez

Agadez

-Sources:* Aboubacar Adamou. "Agadez et sa région. Contribution à l'étude du Sahel et du Sahara nigériens", Études nigériennes, n°44, , 358 p.* Julien Brachet. Migrations transsahariennes. Vers un désert cosmopolite et morcelé . Paris: Le Croquant, , 324 p. ISBN : 978-2-91496865-2.*. Saudi Aaramco...

 military center, platoon

Platoon

A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two to four sections or squads and containing 16 to 50 soldiers. Platoons are organized into a company, which typically consists of three, four or five platoons. A platoon is typically the smallest military unit led by a commissioned officer—the...

 commander, commandant, 121 Compagnie de Commandement d'Appui et des Services, and commander of the garrison at Niger's capital Niamey

Niamey

-Population:While Niamey's population has grown steadily since independence, the droughts of the early 1970s and 1980s, along with the economic crisis of the early 1980s, have propelled an exodus of rural inhabitants to Niger's largest city...

.

Djibo served in United Nations

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

 peacekeeping

Peacekeeping

Peacekeeping is an activity that aims to create the conditions for lasting peace. It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking....

 forces in Côte d'Ivoire (2004) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...

 (2006).

Professed aims of February 2010 coup

His military government

Military government

Military government can refer to conditions under either Military occupation, or Military dictatorship.-Military Government:Military government is the form of administration by which an occupying power exercises governmental authority over occupied territory.The Hague Conventions of 1907 specify...

 announced its intentions to make Niger a model of democracy and good governance.

See also

• 1974 Nigerien coup d'état
  1974 Nigerien coup d'état
  The 1974 Nigerien coup d'état was a largely bloodless military insurrection which overthrew the first postcolonial government of the West African nation of Niger...
  
  
• 1996 Nigerien coup d'état
  1996 Nigerien coup d'état
  The 1996 Nigerien coup d'état was a military coup d'état which occurred on 27 January 1996 in Niamey, Niger. It ousted Niger's first democratically-elected President, Mahamane Ousmane after nearly three years in power and installed General Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara as head of state...
  
  
• 1999 Nigerien coup d'état
  1999 Nigerien coup d'état
  The 1999 Nigerien coup d'état occurred on 9 April 1999 and resulted in the death of President Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara and the installation of Daouda Malam Wanké as President on 11 April. Maïnassara was killed at a military base, possibly by members of the Presidential Guard.-Background:Maïnassara,...
  
  
• 2009–2010 Nigerien constitutional crisis
• 2010 Nigerien coup d'état
  2010 Nigerien coup d'état
  A coup d'état occurred in Niger on 18 February 2010. Soldiers attacked the presidential palace in Niamey under weapons fire at midday and captured President Mamadou Tandja, who was chairing a government meeting at the time...
  
  
• Mahamadou Danda
  Mahamadou Danda
  Mahamadou Danda is a Nigerien political figure who was appointed as Prime Minister of Niger by the Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy on 23 February 2010 and left office on 7 April 2011.-Background:...
  
  
• Mamadou Tandja
• Seyni Oumarou
  Seyni Oumarou
  Seyni Oumarou is a Nigerien politician who was Prime Minister of Niger from June 2007 to September 2009 and President of the National Assembly of Niger from November 2009 to February 2010. He is from the west of the country and is a member of the Djerma ethnic group...
  
  

External links

• cctv.com - Backgrounder: Nigerien junta leader Salou Djibo
• Address by Lieutenant-General Salou Djibo, President of the Supreme Council for Restoration of Democracy, at the 65th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, September 23, 2010 (video, dubbed in English)