The government of Benin Republic says its armed forces has foiled a coup attempt on President Patrice Talon by a group of soldiers , who claimed on national television to have seized power on Sunday.
At least eight soldiers, holding weapons, went on state television on Sunday morning to announce that a military committee led by Colonel Tigri Pascal had taken over and was dissolving national institutions, suspending the constitution and closing air, land and maritime borders.
According to their statement, Lieutenant-Colonel Tigri Pascal will be leading a military transition council.
Some hours after, the Interior Minister, Mr Alassane Seidou, said the country’s armed forces had thwarted the attempted coup and called for calm.
“Therefore, the government urges the population to go about their business as usual,” he said.
According to reports, 14 people had been arrested in connection with the foiled attempt to stop democracy in the country.
Foreign Minister, Mr Olushegun Adjadi Bakari, had earlier told Reuters that “a small group” of soldiers had attempted to overthrow the government but that forces loyal to President Talon were working to restore order.
He said the coup plotters had only managed to take control of state television, which was cut after the soldiers read out their statement. It resumed broadcasting shortly afterwards, allowing the interior minister to read his statement saying the coup bid had been foiled.
The Economic Commission of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU) condemned the coup attempt.
Benin experienced several military coups and coup attempts in the first decades of independence from France in 1960. But there has not been a power grab by force in the country since it held multi-party elections in 1991.
Coups have become common place in Africa since 2020: Mali, Guinea, Sudan, Burkina Faso, Niger, Gabon, Madagascar, and recently Guinea-Bissau have seen military takeover in the recent times. This has raised alarms about possibilities in other African states.