Benin’s President Patrice Talon has praised the country’s military leadership for stopping an attempted coup on Sunday, vowing that those involved “will not go unpunished.” Earlier that morning, soldiers identifying themselves as the Military Committee for Refoundation seized state television and announced they had overthrown the government. Within hours, the interior minister said security forces had regained control and halted what he called an “adventurist rebellion.” In a national address Sunday night, Talon commended the professionalism of the armed forces: “Together, we stood firm, reclaimed our positions, and cleared the last pockets of resistance. This treachery will not go unpunished,” he said, also offering condolences to those affected by the unrest. He noted that some individuals were still being held by fleeing mutineers but gave no casualty or hostage figures.
Local outlets report that at least 13 soldiers have been arrested so far, though it remains unclear whether alleged coup leader Lt. Col. Pascal Tigri is among them. Sporadic gunfire was heard in parts of Cotonou during the day, but the city remained largely calm as state TV and radio signals were restored. The attempted takeover adds to a wave of military upheavals across West Africa. Just last month, Guinea-Bissau’s President Umaro Embaló was ousted following a disputed election. ECOWAS condemned the Benin coup attempt as “a subversion of the people’s will” and announced it had deployed forces from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, and Ghana to support Benin’s army and protect constitutional order.
Nigeria’s government confirmed that Benin requested both air and ground support. According to spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, Nigerian-backed loyalist forces helped retake the national broadcaster from the mutineers. Benin, which experienced several coups after independence from France in 1960, has been seen as one of West Africa’s more stable democracies since the 1990s. President Talon, in office since 2016, is expected to step down next April. His party’s candidate, former Finance Minister Romuald Wadagni, is favored to succeed him, while opposition candidate Renaud Agbodjo was disqualified for lacking required endorsements. This year has also seen heightened political tension: two associates of Talon were sentenced in January to 20 years in prison over an alleged 2024 coup plot, and lawmakers recently approved extending the presidential term from five to seven years, while keeping the two-term limit.
