Mohan Sinha
11 Dec 2025, 01:19 GMT+10
COTONOU, Benin: Benin's interior minister said on Facebook that a coup attempt by some soldiers on December 7 has been foiled.
He said a small group of soldiers tried to start a mutiny early in the morning on December 7 to destabilize the country, but the army stayed loyal to the government.
Earlier, soldiers appeared on state TV and said they had removed the president and dissolved all government institutions. They called themselves the Military Committee for Refoundation and named Lt. Col. Pascal Tigri as their leader.
Benin has had several coups since its independence from France in 1960, but the country has mostly been stable since 1991.
There has been no official news about President Patrice Talon since gunshots were heard near his residence. State TV and radio were cut for a while but are working again now.
The West African regional group ECOWAS strongly condemned the coup attempt and said it supports Benin's government and people.
Talon has been president since 2016 and is expected to leave office next April after the election. His party's candidate, former Finance Minister Romuald Wadagni, is the favorite to win. The electoral commission blocked opposition candidate Renaud Agbodjo for failing to meet the sponsorship requirement.
Earlier this year, two allies of Talon were sentenced to 20 years in prison for another alleged coup plot. Last month, lawmakers extended the presidential term from five to seven years, but the two-term limit remained unchanged.
This attempted coup is the latest in a series of military takeovers in West Africa. Recently, a coup in Guinea-Bissau removed President Umaro Embalo after a disputed election.
Get a daily dose of Los Angeles Herald news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Los Angeles Herald.
More InformationCOTONOU, Benin: Benin's interior minister said on Facebook that a coup attempt by some soldiers on December 7 has been foiled. He...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Two men, one a former high-level agent with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the other his associate,...
NEW DELHI, India: Twenty-five people, mostly kitchen workers and some tourists, died when a fire destroyed Birch, a popular nightclub...
SYDNEY, Australia: With Australia days away from enforcing its world-first social media ban for under-16s, teenagers and mental health...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: U.S. vaccine advisers have voted to overturn more than three decades of standard practice by ending the recommendation...
WASHINGTON, D.C. A U.S. agency says it has requested more information from Waymo after Texas officials reported that the company's...
PALO ALTO, California: As holiday spending ramps up, shoppers are being offered more artificial intelligence tools than ever before...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: A large recall affecting shredded cheese products across the United States is underway after federal regulators flagged...
(Photo credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images) Joe Buck is the 2026 winner of the Ford C. Frick Award, joining his late dad as the only...
Washington DC [US], December 10 (ANI): Actor Johnny Depp is set to produce and possibly star in the first-ever English-language film...
New Delhi [India], December 10 (ANI): The 9th Elite Men & Women National Boxing Championship, earlier scheduled from December 31, 2025,...
(Photo credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images) Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles take the field this week trying to avoid a four-game...
