<\/p>\n
Soldiers in the West African nation of Benin have announced on national TV that they have ousted President Patrice Talon and seized power.<\/p>\n
A message from the French embassy in Benin said gunfire had been reported near the residence of the president in the main city of Cotonou.<\/p>\n
The soldiers also announced a suspension of the constitution, the closure of all land borders as well as the country’s airspace.<\/p>\n
But officials close to the president say he is fine and that the small group of soldiers at the TV station did not have the backing of the regular army.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
“The situation is under control. A large part of the army is still loyalist – and we are taking over the situation,” Foreign Minister Shegun Adjadi Bakari told Reuters news agency.<\/p>\n
An unnamed person in the presidency told the AFP news agency: “This is a small group of people who only control the television. The city and the country are completely secure.”<\/p>\n
According to the statement read out by the soldiers, Lieutenant-Colonel Tigri Pascal will be leading a military transition council.<\/p>\n
They justified their actions by criticising President Talon’s management of the country.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Talon, 67, is due to step down next year after completing his second term in office, with elections scheduled for April.<\/p>\n
A businessman known as the “king of cotton”, he first came to power in an election in 2016. He had promised not to seek a third term and had already named a successor.<\/p>\n
The French Embassy has urged its citizens to stay indoors for their safety.<\/p>\n
Benin has been regarded as one of Africa’s more stable democracies. It is the continent’s largest cotton producers, but ranks among the world’s poorest countries.<\/p>\n
This apparent coup in Benin comes just over a week after Umaro Sissoco Embal\u00f3 was overthrown as president in nearby Guinea-Bissau.<\/p>\n
In recent years, there have been several coups in West Africa, including in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali and Niger, heightening fears that the security of the region could worsen.<\/p>\n
Benin has seen a rise in jihadist activity in recent years, as groups linked to Islamic State and al-Qaeda spread to the south.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
#Soldiers #ousted #President #Talon #power<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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