Leaders from the West African regional bloc were set to discuss the situation of three military-led governments<br>
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West African leaders on Sunday gave three countries <br>
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led by military governments six months to reconsider <br>
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their decision to quit the regional group ECOWAS.<br>
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They also approved the creation of a special court to judge crimes committed during the rule of former dictator Yahya Jammeh in Gambia.<br>
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The decision on the military governments in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger came after all three countries said their decision to quit the Economic Community of <br>
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West African States was "irreversible".<br>
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<b>They condemned the bloc as subservient to ex-colonial <br>
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ruler France.</b><br>
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The imminent departure of the three Sahel states could have a major impact <br>
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on free trade and movement as well as on security cooperation in a region where <br>
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jihadists tied both to Al Qaeda and Islamic State are gaining ground.<br>
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Under the bloc's regulations, their quitting the group would <br>
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have become effective next month, a year after their initial January <br>
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2024 announcements.<br>
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But following a meeting of West African leaders in Abuja, the group said in a statement: "The authority decides to set the period from 29 January, 2025, to 29 July, 2025, as a transitional period and to keep ECOWAS doors open to the three countries."<br>
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<b>- 'Irrevocable decision' -</b><br>
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Senegal's President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, appointed as a mediator with the breakaway states by the 15-member ECOWAS in July, was among <br>
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those at the summit.<br>
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He had said last week he was "making progress" in talks <br>
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and that was no reason for them not to maintain relations, especially given the security situation.<br>
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ECOWAS on Sunday authorised Faye -- and Togo's President Faure Gnassingbe, who has <br>
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also been mediating with the three states -- to continue negotiations.<br>
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The three breakaway states have already formed their own confederation, the <br>
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Alliance of Sahel States (AES), after severing ties with France, and pivoting towards <br>
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Russia.<br>
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<strong>They held their own ministerial-level meeting Friday in Niger's capital, Niamey.</strong><br>
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"The ministers reiterate the irreversible decision to withdraw from ECOWAS and are committed to pursuing a process of reflection on the means of exiting in the best interests of their peoples," they said in a joint statement.<br>
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All three states have gone through military coups in recent years and all are <br>
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battling jihadist insurgencies. ECOWAS member state Guinea is also run by a military government after a 2021 <br>
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coup.<br>
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Tensions with ECOWAS spiked after the bloc threatened military intervention and imposed <br>
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heavy sanctions following the July 2023 coup in Niger -- the region's sixth in three years.<br>
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ECOWAS has since softened its position, though member states <br>
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are split over the best course of action to deal with the military governments.<br>
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<u><i>- Special Tribunal for Gambia-</i></u><br>
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The bloc also announced Sunday that it backed the creation of a special court to judge crimes committed during the dictatorship <br>
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of Gambia's former strongman Yahya Jammeh.<br>
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The Special Tribunal for Gambia "will ensure justice and accountability for gross human rights violations committed between July 1994 and January 2017", said <br>
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a statement from ECOWAS.<br>
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This is the first time the bloc has partnered with a member <br>
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state to set up such a court, the statement added.<br>
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Jammeh's 22 years in power were marked by significant rights abuses and the earmarking of state funds for the eccentric <br>
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former leader's personal use, the new government and rights <br>
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groups say.<br>
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He fled in 2017 after losing an election to current President Adama Barrow.<br>
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Leaders from the West African