Yahya Jammeh, in power since the 1994 coup, conceded defeat to Adama Barrow on 2 December 2016, then reversed himself on 9 December. ECOWAS at its 17 December 2016 Abuja summit authorised the Operation Restore Democracy intervention. Barrow was sworn in at the Gambian embassy in Dakar on 19 January 2017; an ECOWAS Standby Force (ECOMIG) under Senegalese tactical command and overall Nigerian theatre command (Maj-Gen. Frances Awosika) crossed the border the same day.
The Nigerian Air Force deployed a NAF detachment of two Alpha Jets, a C-130 and a CASA C-295 to Dakar in support; the Nigerian Navy frigate NNS Unity (F-92) sailed off Banjul as the maritime component of the operation. Mediation by Presidents Buhari, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz (Mauritania) and Alpha Condé (Guinea), with the Moroccan King facilitating exile arrangements, produced Jammeh's departure for Equatorial Guinea on 21 January 2017. No shots were fired.
The operation is the most successful ECOWAS military intervention to date — a 72-hour resolution achieved through the credible threat of force backed by months of pre-positioning. ECOMIG remained in The Gambia in a residual training role until 2024. See The Gambia relations.