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Ivory Coast joins other African countries to expel French troops from Its Soil
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The Government of Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) has announced that French troops will begin their withdrawal from the country in January 2025.
This marks another significant reduction in France’s military presence in West Africa.
President Alassane Ouattara who disclosed this in his end-of-year address to the country on Tuesday, stated that the move reflects the modernization of Ivory Coast’s armed forces.
“We have decided on the concerted and organised withdrawal of French forces,” Ouattara said, adding that the Port Bouet military base will be transferred to Ivorian control in January 2025.
France has maintained a military presence in Ivory Coast since its independence in 1960, with up to 600 troops stationed there.
Ivory Coast’s decision follows similar moves by other West African nations, which have also requested the departure of foreign troops amid a broader trend of reassessing military ties with former colonial powers.
In recent years, France has been expelled from Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger following military coups.
Chad terminated its defense cooperation agreement with France in November, while Senegal, another former French colony, announced that all French military bases on its territory would close by the end of 2025.
France’s military presence in Africa has been controversial for decades. Critics argue that it perpetuates neocolonial dynamics, while supporters maintain that French troops play a crucial role in combating terrorism and maintaining stability.
However, leaders in these nations contend that the presence of Western forces has not effectively addressed their security challenges, prompting them to seek alternative partnerships, including with Russia.
When Ivory Coast first announced the withdrawal in December, the Russian Foreign Ministry stated that the planned exit of French troops demonstrates they are “no longer needed” in the country.
“This generally fits into the logic of the processes taking place in the Francophone countries of West Africa, whose populations are increasingly critical of the large-scale presence of foreign troops,” it added.
Paris is working to revamp its strategy on the continent, aiming to reduce permanent troop deployments and focus on more targeted operations, while retaining some 1500 soldiers in Djibouti and a small contingent of around 350 troops in Gabon.
Norwegian Air Shuttle, has changed its logo to that of British Airways on Instagram after losing a bet on the 2026 FIFA World Cup quarter-final match between England and Norway on Saturday.
Ahead of the high-profile match, Norwegian Air challenged British Airways to a wager that would see the losing airline replace its Instagram profile picture with the winner’s logo for 24 hours.
Hey @british_airways, do you wanna make
a bet? If Norway wins, you have to switch to our logo on Instagram on Sunday (one day). And vice versa. Deal?,” Norwegian Air posted on Instagram before the match.
British Airways wasted no time accepting the friendly offer, warning the challenger against biting off more than they could chew, writing “Don’t make bets you can’t win.”
During the match, it was the Norwegians who landed the first blow after Andreas Schjelderup opened the scoring for them in 36th minute, firing home the ball over goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, who was caught off his line.
It was looking like Norway would take the lead into the break until Jude Bellingham drove a pass from Anthony Gordon into the box before latching it into the net from close range to equalise for England.
Neither side was able to find the net in the second half, forcing the match into extra time when Bellingham scored within its first three minutes, which ended up being the winning goal of the match to send England into the semifinals.
Following Norway’s defeat, Norwegian Air acknowledged the result and immediately fulfilled the bet’s condition by swapping its Instagram profile picture for the logo of British Airways.
“While the tournament is over for us, this friendly bet will forever live in all our hearts. We wish England and
@british_airways all the best in the semi-final, and we sincerely hope you’ll get to bring football home!,” Norwegian Air said in response to losing the bet.
Also, British Airways thanked its Norwegian Airways counterpart for the challenge, assuring that both England and Norway would remain friends forever.
“Rivals for 90 minutes, friends forever. A little competition keeps things interesting, thanks for challenging us @flynorwegian! Well done to the England team on qualifying for the World Cup semi-finals! It’s coming home!,” the airline said.
Nevertheless, the World Cup marked a historic milestone for Norway because it’s the first time the Scandinavian nation reached the tournament’s quarter-finals.
It was a sad tale as the collapse of the Gombe State House of Assembly complex under construction has claimed one life and left seven others injured.
The incident occurred on Friday when a section of the building gave way, trapping construction workers beneath the debris before emergency responders launched a rescue operation.
Head of Operations, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Gombe Operations Office, Ahmed Ummanah, confirmed the incident, stating that all the trapped workers were rescued from the rubble.
He disclosed that three of the injured victims were taken to the Federal Teaching Hospital (FTH), Gombe, while five others were evacuated to the Gombe State Specialist Hospital for medical treatment. He added that some of the victims sustained severe injuries.
The construction company handling the project had yet to issue an official statement on the incident as efforts to obtain its reaction were unsuccessful.
Authorities have commenced investigations to determine the cause of the building collapse, while safety experts are expected to assess the structural integrity of the project.
Construction of access road from Tungan Madaki to Zuba will be Flagged off today
#ProjectsFCT2026
#FCT31DaysCommissioning
Norwegian Air adorns British Airways logo for 24hrs after losing 2026 World Cup wager
One dies, seven injured as Gombe Assembly Complex under construction collapses
DAY 24 of Projects Commissioning and Flag-Off in the FCT
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