Mauritanian army seizes power in bloodless coup

Aug 6, 2008, 16:56 GMT

An undated photo made available on 06 August 2008, shows Mauritanian President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallah (L) as he is greeted by the head of presidential guards commander General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz (R) at the airport in Nouakchott, Mauritania. A military junta seized power in Mauritania on 06 August following the arrests of the President and Prime Minister, the local news agency ANI reported. EPA/AHMED EL HAJJ

Nouakchott, Mauritania - A military junta Wednesday seized power in Mauritania following the arrests of the president and prime minister in the coup-prone north-west African desert country.

A 'state council' under the leadership of presidential guard commander Mohammed Ould Abdel Aziz had taken power, according to a declaration which was read out on television.

The decision taken by toppled president Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi to sack Ould Abdel Aziz and other top military officials was not valid, the declaration said.

Troops entered the presidential palace and arrested Cheikh Abdallahi, Radio France Internationale (RFI) quoted his daughter as saying.

Sources associated with the presidency said Cheikh Abdallahi and Prime Minister Yahya Ould Ahmed Waghf were being held under house arrest.

The interior minister was also in custody, al-Jazeera television reported.

Local observers reported demonstrations in favour of the coup by Mauritanians who accused the president of corruption and described him as having done a poor job.

Troops took strategic positions in the capital Nouakchott, but local people said that not a single shot was heard.

Local television and radio went off the air, and the airport was closed.

Cheikh Abdallahi was elected in 2007 in what was described as the first transparent presidential poll in the Islamic republic, a former French colony.

The vote capped a series of polls that were seen as having turned Mauritania into an African democracy model following a history of coups and the 1984-2005 dictatorship of Maaouya Ould Taya.

Recently, however, Cheikh Abdallahi had run into political trouble, with 48 MPs walking out of the ruling party following a vote of no-confidence and reshuffle of the government.

The president had reportedly decided to sack Ould Abdel Aziz and the army chief of staff over suspicions that they were behind the mass walkout, though no official reason was given for firing them.

The coup leaders had already participated in the bloodless 2005 coup which ousted Ould Taya and handed power over to civilians.

They were especially critical of Cheikh Abdallahi's contacts with Salafist Islamists, accusing him of not fighting the growing presence of al-Qaeda in the traditionally moderate Islamic country.

Several terrorist acts have shocked Mauritanians recently, including the killings of four French tourists and several Mauritanian soldiers in December that prompted the cancellation of the Lisbon-Dakar rally.

Cheikh Abdallahi was also criticized over rising food prices and for rejecting the establishment of a commission to investigate the financing of a foundation run by his wife.