A French mining company sues Niger after its director disappears and offices are raided

French uranium mining company Orano says it has sued the government of Niger after the disappearance of its director and the raiding of its local offices. Military authorities in the west African country have been tightening their grip on foreign companies and civil society. Niger is the world’s seventh biggest supplier of uranium. Orano has been operating there for over 50 years, but the military authorities withdrew the company’s operating permit. Military authorities seized power in 2023 on the pledge of cutting ties with the West and vowed to review mining concessions. They have not commented on the lawsuit.