Benin’s President Patrice Talon appeared on live television Tuesday evening to assure citizens that an attempted coup earlier in the day had been swiftly contained. Calm and composed, the 67-year-old leader confirmed that loyalist forces had “cleared the last pockets of resistance held by the mutineers.”
“This commitment and mobilisation enabled us to defeat these opportunists and avert disaster for our country. This treachery will not go unpunished,” Talon said, urging the public to remain calm. “I would like to reassure you that the situation is completely under control and therefore invite you to go about your business peacefully this evening.”
It remains unclear if there were casualties, though the president extended his condolences “to the victims of this senseless adventure, as well as to those still being held by fleeing mutineers.”
Earlier, government spokesperson Wilfried Leandre Houngbedji told Reuters that 14 people had been arrested in connection with the attempt, including 12 who reportedly stormed the offices of the national TV station. Among them was a soldier previously dismissed from the military.
Tensions escalated during the day when loud explosions were heard across Cotonou, the country’s largest city and seat of government. Flight-tracking data revealed that three aircraft had entered Benin’s airspace from neighboring Nigeria prior to the blasts. A spokesman for Nigeria’s president later confirmed that its fighter jets had intervened “to take over the airspace and help dislodge the coup plotters from the national TV station and a military camp where they had regrouped.”
The thwarted attempt in Benin follows a worrying trend of coups in West Africa, raising concerns about regional stability. Nigeria, Benin’s much larger neighbor to the east, condemned the attempt as a “direct assault on democracy.”
Benin, a former French colony, has long been seen as one of Africa’s more stable democracies. Yet President Talon has faced criticism for allegedly suppressing dissent against his policies. The country is a major cotton producer but remains one of the poorest nations in the world.
