Niger palace stripped of possessions

State-run radio in Niger says the palace of the former Sultan of Zinder, Aboubacar Sanda, has been ransacked.

According to the radio, a crowd tore away doors, windows, air conditioners and other valuable property at the palace.

But the chief courtier to the former sultan, Marka Umara, told the BBC that the items had been removed on the sultan's orders ahead of the swearing-in of his successor tomorrow.

Mr Umara said the possessions were personal property, paid for by the ex-sultan.

Aboubacar Sanda was stripped of his 20-year title earlier this month following an alleged plot to overthrow the government and accusations of other criminal offences. The former Sultan is currently in detention in the Niger capital, Niamey.

His successor, Elhadj Mamadou Moustapha - a former gendarme - was named on Monday.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service