Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum on Thursday defiantly vowed to protect “hard-won” democratic gains after he was detained by elite troops who declared they had taken power in the troubled West African nation.

Bazoum was confined in Niamey on Wednesday by members of his presidential guard, who hours later announced that “all institutions” in the country would be suspended, the borders closed and a night-time curfew imposed.

Amid fierce condemnation from African and international organisations and Niger’s Western allies, Bazoum has stood his ground.