By Our Reporter
Burkina Faso has released 11 Nigerian Air Force (NAF) personnel and has cleared them for immediate return home after being briefly detained in Bobo-Dioulasso, southwestern Burkina Faso.
Their detention followed the emergency landing on Monday of a NAF C-130 aircraft in Bobo-Dioulasso, in Southwestern Burkina Faso, without due clearance, which sparked off diplomatic rows between Nigeria and Burkina Faso.
Following this incident, the Burkina Faso government accused the Nigerian government of flying the NAF C-130, over their airspace without authorization. The Nigerian government in return had stated that the infringement was not deliberate adding that the NAF C-130 aircraft was en route to Portugal for a routine ferry mission, but was forced to execute a precautionary/emergency landing at Bobo-Dioulasso.
According to NAF statements, the crew observed a technical issue shortly after departing from Lagos, necessitating the unscheduled stop.
However, the Alliance of Sahel States (AES)—a military bloc comprising Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, countries that got together to establish the AES, after the withdrawal of its members from ECOWAS, swiftly condemned the action as an “unauthorised” entry into Burkinabe airspace, labelling it as a ‘hostile’ unscheduled entry of foreign military aircraft into their airspace. The Sahel States viewed such unauthorised incursion as a serious breach of national sovereignty.
The incident further led to the detention of the 11 crew members and the seizure of the aircraft pending full investigations.
So far, NAF has assured the safety of its personnel and noted that they had been treated with courtesy by the host authorities, as efforts are underway to resume the flight to Portugal.