President Talon’s office states that he is safe and that large part of army ‘is still loyalist’.
Benin’s government says loyalist soldiers and national guards have regained control after a group of soldiers announced on state television that they had seized power in an apparent coup attempt in the West African nation.
Foreign Minister Olushegun Adjadi Bakari said on Sunday that the coup plotters had taken control of state TV only and that the signal had been cut for several minutes.
“There is an attempt, but the situation is under control. Now it’s a small group of military. A large part of the army is still loyalist, and we are taking over the situation,” Bakari told the Reuters news agency.
A group of at least eight soldiers led by Lieutenant-Colonel Pascal Tigri had appeared on screen to claim the overthrow of President Patrice Talon, who has been in power since 2016, as well as all state institutions. They also claimed that the country’s borders had been closed and that all political parties had been suspended.
The troops referred to themselves as part of the “Military Committee for Refoundation” (CMR).
“The army solemnly commits to give the Beninese people the hope of a truly new era, where fraternity, justice and work prevail,” said a statement read by one of the soldiers.
Following the takeover attempt, the president’s office stated that Talon is safe and that the army was gradually regaining control, according to the AFP news agency.
“This is a small group of people who only control the television,” the presidency told AFP.
“The regular army is regaining control. The city and the country are completely secure,” it said.
The French embassy said at the time of the state TV takeover that “gunfire was reported at Camp Guezo” near the president’s official residence in Cotonou, the country’s largest city.
An AFP journalist in Cotonou reported that soldiers were blocking access to the presidency and state television, as well as a five-star hotel and districts housing international institutions. But there was no military presence at the airport and the rest of the city, and residents were going about their business, the agency reported.
Talon is due to step down next April after 10 years in power.
The apparent coup attempt “does not come as a surprise to anyone”, Adama Gaye, a former director of communication at West African bloc ECOWAS, told Al Jazeera.
He stated that there has been a lot of political tension in the country, with many opposition members imprisoned.
Talon had managed to “eliminate key people in the opposition party, including former President Boni Yayi”, Gaye said, adding that he had designated his finance minister to take over the reins after the next election.
A number of coups have taken place across the continent in recent years.
Just last month, army officials in Guinea-Bissau seized power in a military coup with General Horta Inta-A named as the head of a one-year transitional government. The country has experienced nine coup attempts since its independence from Portugal in 1974.
In 2023, military leader Brice Oligui Nguema toppled Gabon’s then-President Ali Bongo Ondimba, a leader whose family had held power in the country for almost 56 years.
That same year, a coup removed Niger’s Mohamed Bazoum, a democratically elected leader who ruled for just two years before he was forced out of office. A military government was then installed, led by President Abdourahamane Tchiani.
In 2022, Burkina Faso’s military leader, President Paul-Henri Damiba, was deposed in the country’s second coup in a year, as army Captain Ibrahim Traore took charge.
In Mali, General Assimi Goita led soldiers to seize power in a 2020 coup.
