• Journalist Ali Soumana jailed for article alleging customs fraud
• Charged with defamation, linked to PM's alleged document
• Arrest follows broader media crackdown under Niger’s military rule

Ali Soumana, founder and publishing director of the weekly newspaper Le Courrier, was jailed on Monday, September 8, and transferred to Say prison, about 50 kilometers south of the capital, Niamey. The arrest followed a complaint filed by Prime Minister Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine over an article that alleged customs fraud involving traders and government officials.

Judicial sources and Soumana's newspaper reported that the journalist was arrested at his home early Sunday, September 7, by judicial police and taken to Niamey for a brief detention. He was brought before a prosecutor the next day and charged with "defamation," "complicity in the dissemination by press and electronic means," and "harm to human dignity."

The article, published in late August, focused on an alleged cigarette smuggling scheme worth billions of CFA francs. The story mentioned a document bearing the prime minister's supposed signature, which prompted the legal action.

On Monday, the Union of Journalists of the Free African Press (UJPLA) expressed its "deep concern" and demanded Soumana's immediate release.

Soumana's case is part of a broader trend of prosecutions against journalists in Niger. In Dosso, Moussa Moumouni was sentenced to two years in prison, while Zada Hassane Badjé, head of the Canal 3 television station, has been in custody since August 25 for "insulting" comments against junta leader Abdourahamane Tiani. Badjé's verdict is expected on September 16, following a five-year prison request by the prosecution. In January 2024, the government suspended the Niger Press House and replaced it with an ad hoc committee led by officials from the interior and communications ministries.

Niger has been under military rule since July 2023, and international NGOs have consistently condemned the repression of critical voices. In 2025, the country ranked 83rd out of 180 on Reporters Without Borders' (RSF) World Press Freedom Index, a three-place drop from the previous year. RSF described the situation as "problematic," citing the lack of legal security for journalists and the absence of independent regulatory bodies.

Servan Ahougnon