A group of soldiers announced Sunday morning on Benin state television the dissolution of the government of President Patrice Talon in an apparent coup, which would have been the latest of many in West Africa. Later, Interior Minister Alassane Seidou said in a video on Facebook that the attempted coup had been “foiled”. Read our blog to see how the day’s events unfolded.
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Nigeria dispatches jets, troops to quash Benin coup bid
Nigerian fighter jets and ground troops moved on Monday to help restore order after a foiled coup attempt in Benin, aiming to head off a political crisis in a country that is battling jihadists and serves as a key trade corridor in West Africa.
In its first foreign military intervention in nearly a decade, Nigeria was motivated by fears of an unfriendly military regime taking charge in its backyard, potentially allowing violence to spill across its borders, analysts told Reuters.
President Bola Tinubu sent fighter jets to assert control over Benin’s airspace on Sunday as his close ally, Benin President Patrice Talon, tried to put down the coup attempt by what officials described as a small group of soldiers.
Tinubu’s office said the operation included surveillance and rapid intervention missions coordinated with Benin. It was expected to be supplemented by the deployment of troops from Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast and Ghana under the West African bloc ECOWAS.
Army officers taken hostage in coup attempt released
Two high-ranking Benin army officers taken hostage during Sunday’s attempted coup have been released, sources say.
The senior officers were released overnight Sunday to Monday, according to two military sources AFP spoke to.
Chief of army staff Abou Issa and army chief Colonel Faizou Gomina were set free near Benin’s National Guard in Cotonou.
“Both of them are free,” one of the sources said.
It was still unknown how many people were involved in the attempted overthrow or were still missing.
Benin coup leader’s location and fate of hostages unknown after failed takeover
The apparent leader of a failed coup in Benin was on the run and the fate of hostages remained unclear a day after a group of soldiers attempted to overthrow the government of the West African nation.
The soldiers calling themselves the Committee for Refoundation stormed the national television station early Sunday morning. Led by Benin army officer Lt. Col. Pascal Tigri, eight soldiers appeared in a broadcast announcing the removal of President Patrice Talon, dissolution of the government and suspension of all state institutions.
By Sunday afternoon, the coup was foiled by Benin’s military, supported by Nigerian air and ground forces, which launched a series of attacks against fleeing mutineers. At least a dozen soldiers were arrested while others remained at large Monday. Tigri’s whereabouts were not known.
Benin’s president condemns a foiled coup bid
Benin President Patrice Talon on Sunday condemned an attempted coup that was foiled by the country’s army in his first public comments since sporadic gunfire was heard in parts of the administrative capital, Cotonou.
A group of soldiers appeared on Benin ’s state TV earlier Sunday to announce the dissolution of the government in an apparent coup, which would have been the latest of many in West Africa. The group called itself the Military Committee for Refoundation.
Later, Interior Minister Alassane Seidou announced in a video on Facebook that the attempted coup had been “foiled”, but Talon, whose location was unclear, did not comment.
Benin President Patrice Talon on Sunday condemned an attempted coup that was foiled by the country’s army in his first public comments since sporadic gunfire was heard in parts of the administrative capital, Cotonou.
Nigeria sent air force fighter jets to take over Benin’s airspace at the request of President Patrice Talon’s government to help dislodge the coup plotters from the state television network and a military camp, a statement from Nigerian President Bola Tinubu’s office said.
The ECOWAS West Africa regional bloc on Sunday ordered the deployment of troops from four countries to Benin following an attempted coup.
