11 Nigerian soldiers detained in Burkina Faso released

Burkina Faso have released 11 Nigerian Air Force (NAF) personnel and their C-130 Hercules aircraft, after 10 days.
‎
The crisis began on December 8, when the NAF C-130, en route from Lagos to Portugal for routine maintenance, developed a technical fault mid-air. In order to adhere to international aviation protocols, the pilots made a precautionary landing at the nearest airfield in Bobo-Dioulasso.
‎
‎However, Burkina Faso’s military government and the Confederation of Sahel States, comprising Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, initially labeled the landing as an unfriendly act and a violation of their sovereignty.
‎
Tensions were inflamed because the incident occurred just 24 hours after Nigerian forces conducted airstrikes in Benin to dislodge coup plotters, which made the Sahel juntas suspicious.
‎
The release was secured after President Bola Tinubu dispatched Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar to meet with Burkina Faso’s military ruler, Ibrahim Traoré.
‎
Despite initial allegations of espionage and airspace violation by the AES, investigations confirmed the aircraft was unarmed, carried no surveillance equipment, and was strictly on a maintenance trip.
‎
The 11 personnel, comprising pilots, engineers, and support staff, met with Minister Tuggar in Ouagadougou after their release and are to return back to Nigeria today, Thursday.
‎
‎
‎