Burkina Faso releases Nigerian air force crew detained after emergency landing

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ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Burkina Faso on Wednesday released 11 Nigerian Air Force personnel who were detained more than a week ago after their aircraft made an emergency landing, Nigeria's foreign minister said.

“Through sustained dialogue, we also resolved the matter concerning Nigerian Air Force pilots and crew, reaffirming the effectiveness of diplomacy in addressing sensitive issues,” Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar said Thursday in a statement on X.

Burkina Faso’s military junta, led by Ibrahim Traoré, released the personnel after meetings with a Nigerian delegation led by Tuggar, the statement said.

The personnel detained on Dec. 8 included two flight crew members and nine passengers, officials said.

“Matters have been resolved," Alkasim Abdulkadir, a spokesperson for Tuggar, told The Associated Press. "They are no longer detained.”

Nigeria and Burkina Faso agreed to hold regular consultations and pursue steps to deepen bilateral cooperation and regional integration, Abdulkadir said.

The Nigerian Air Force said last week that the aircraft was headed to Portugal for scheduled maintenance when it made the emergency landing in western Burkina Faso. The air force said the landing was done in accordance with international guidelines and standard safety procedures.

But Foreign Minister Tuggar said Wednesday in a televised speech on Burkina Faso’s state broadcaster that there were “irregularities concerning the overflight authorizations” and apologized for the incident.

The emergency landing had prompted the Alliance of Sahel States to place its air and anti-air defenses on maximum alert with authorization “to neutralize any aircraft that violates the confederation’s airspace,” according to a statement by Gen. Assimi Goita, leader of Mali’s military junta. The alliance includes Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

The crew will now fly the aircraft to Portugal for the scheduled maintenance, Nigerian foreign ministry spokesperson Kimiebi Ebienfa said Thursday.

The emergency landing occurred at a time of fractured relations between the Alliance of Sahel States and Nigeria, which was involved in intervention efforts that helped reverse a short-lived coup earlier this month in Benin, where the Nigerian Air Force conducted airstrikes targeting the coup plotters. Burkina Faso is on the northwest border of Benin, and Nigeria is on Benin’s eastern border.

Nigeria is among 15 members of West Africa’s regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS.

Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger formed the Sahel alliance after withdrawing from ECOWAS, which the alliance accuses of inhumane, coup-related sanctions and working against the interests of citizens in alliance countries.