Burkina Faso has released 11 Nigerian military personnel detained after a Nigerian Air Force C-130 made an unauthorised landing at the Bobo-Dioulasso airfield.
The crew, two members and nine passengers, were questioned over suspicions of links to the recent failed coup in Benin but were later cleared and returned to Nigeria.
Nigeria said the aircraft made a technical emergency landing en route to Portugal. But Burkinabe authorities insisted the plane violated their airspace, triggering a security response.
Burkina Faso’s Interior Minister, Emile Zerbo, said officials acted under national security protocols.
The Alliance of Sahel States (Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger) condemned the incident as a breach of sovereignty.
The Nigerian Air Force said its crew followed aviation safety procedures and were treated respectfully.
The incident adds pressure to already strained relations between Nigeria and the AES bloc.
