YENAGOA, Nigeria The Nigerian military said on Thursday it is deploying troops to Gambia as part of a West African coalition force, aiming to uphold the result of December’s presidential elections.
“The Nigerian military will deploy its assets as part of (a) standby force to protect the people of the Gambia and maintain sub regional peace and security,” the armed forces said in a statement.
Adama Barrow was sworn in as Gambia’s president at its embassy in neighbouring Senegal on Thursday, as regional troops prepared to back him in a showdown with incumbent Yahya Jammeh, who has refused to step down despite his December election loss.
(Reporting by Tife Owolabi in Yenagoa; Writing by Paul Carsten; Editing by Dominic Evans)
