Journalist Ibro Chaibou released after ten months in Niger prison

Ibro Chaibou, editor-in-chief of the private television station Saraounia, was released from prison on Friday, August 28, 2026, after nearly ten months of detention in Niger.

Chaibou was arrested in Niamey on October 30, 2025, and held at Kollo Prison. He was among a group of journalists charged with “complicity in disseminating a document liable to disturb public order” under cybercrime legislation. The charges originated from the social media circulation of a press conference invitation issued by the Solidarity Fund for the Safeguarding of the Homeland (FSSP), an initiative of the military authorities.

While two of his colleagues, Youssouf Seriba and Oumarou Kané, were released in July 2026 following a dismissal of charges, Chaibou remained in custody until his recent release. Human rights organizations, including Reporters Without Borders, Human Rights Watch, and the FIDH, had previously criticized the use of cybercrime laws to restrict press freedom under the military government that seized power in 2023.