The Interior Minister of the Government of Benin, Alassane Seidou, has said that the West African state has foiled an attempted coup by members of its armed forces.
“The Beninese armed forces and their leadership, true to their oath, remained committed to the republic,” the interior minister said in a televised address.
According to the minister, “a small group of soldiers launched a mutiny aimed at destabilising the state and its institutions.” He, however, said that loyalist soldiers had been able “to retain control of the situation and foil the attempt.”
We earlier reported that a group of soldiers made a broadcast in which they claimed to have ousted President Patrice Talon.
Coup leader Lt Col Pascal Tigri justified their actions by criticising President Talon’s management of the country, complaining first about his handling of the “continuing deterioration of the security situation in northern Benin.”
It is understood that 14 people have been arrested in connection with the attempted coup.
A former French colony, Benin, has been regarded as one of Africa’s more stable democracies.
There have been a series of coups in West Africa before this Sunday’s thwarted attempt in Benin, heightening fears that the security of the region could worsen.
