Ciaran’s Peculier [sic] Blog

The coup was launched by the Presidential guard, who arrested the president at his home and lead him to an unidentified location. The prime minister was arrested at around the same time at his office and brought to a nearby barracks where he is being held. The soldiers’ actions were prompted by the sacking earlier in the morning by the president of the head of the presidential guard, General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, and the chief-of-staff of the defence forces, Ould Cheikh Mohamed Ahmed. Their dismissals were announced on national radio in the morning. Within hours the president had been taken into custody. National radio has been shut down and soldiers are apparently patrolling in front of the building. The earlier presidential decree has been quashed and a new council of state has been formed headed by General Abdel-Aziz.

According to Le Figaro, this is not General Abdel-Aziz’s first coup. He participated in the revolt of August 3rd 2005 which toppled long-time strongman Maaouyz Ould Sidi Ben Ahmed Taya and formed a part of the transition council which led the county between that coup and the holding of elections early in 2007. A parliamentarian has stated that the coup enjoyed the support of the majority of Mauritanians, and that the ousted government was an authoritarian regime which had marginalised the people.