Nigerian fighter jets and more ground troops were yesterday deployed in Benin Republic to help restore order after the failed coup attempt in the West African country.

The deployment is aimed at heading off a political crisis in a country that is battling jihadists and serves as a key trade corridor in the sub-region.

The apparent leader of the failed coup – Lt. Col. Pascal Tigri Tigri – was on-the-run and the fate of hostages remained unclear yesterday, a day after a group of soldiers attempted to overthrow the government.

The soldiers, calling themselves the Committee for Refoundation, stormed the national television station early Sunday morning.

Col. Tigri led eight other soldiers in a broadcast to announce the removal of President Patrice Talon, dissolution of the government and suspension of state institutions.

By Sunday afternoon, the coup was foiled by Benin’s military, supported by Nigerian air and ground forces, which launched a series of attacks against fleeing mutineers. At least a dozen soldiers were arrested while others remained at large yesterday. Tigri’s whereabouts were not known.

Guterres condemns attempted coup

United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the attempted coup, saying it would “further threaten the stability of the region.”

Guterres said he was deeply concerned by the attempt to unconstitutionally seize power in Benin.

“The Secretary-General unequivocally condemns any attempt to undermine democratic governance in Benin, which could also further threaten the stability of the region. He calls for full respect for the rule of law and the Constitution,” his spokesman said.

Why Nigeria sent more fighter jets, ground troops

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu sent fighter jets to assert control over Benin’s airspace as his close ally, Benin President Patrice Talon, tried to put down the coup attempt by what officials described as a small group of soldiers.

Tinubu’s office said the operation included surveillance and rapid intervention missions coordinated with Benin. It was expected to be bolstered by troops from Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast and Ghana under the West African bloc ECOWAS.

Nigeria last intervened abroad in 2017 when Gambian President Yahya Jammeh refused to step down after losing an election. The regional force deployed to Gambia did not engage in any fighting as Jammeh quickly capitulated.

Nigeria has responded far less aggressively to recent coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and neighbouring Niger. When soldiers toppled Guinea-Bissau’s president last month, Tinubu’s government condemned the coup and called for a return to constitutional order.

But the prospect of a hostile military-led government taking over in Benin, which borders Nigerian territory in the West, targeted by jihadist groups, was too much to stomach, said Mucahid Durmaz, senior Africa analyst at risk intelligence group, Verisk Maplecroft.

Northern Benin has suffered repeated jihadist attacks, including major assaults in January and April that killed dozens of soldiers.

This is despite the government sending thousands of troops since 2022 under its Operation Mirador to stabilise that territory, which borders Nigeria, Niger, Burkina Faso and Togo.

The coup plotters cited insecurity in the north as a justification for attempting the putsch, but for Nigeria a change of power in Benin raised fears of being “surrounded by hostile and unpredictable neighbours,” Durmaz added.

ECOWAS, the regional bloc, “wants to show that they are doing something because they’ve been so completely inefficient in countering any of the coups that have taken place in the region during the past five years,” said Nina Wilen, director of the Africa Programme at the Egmont Institute for International Relations in Belgium.

Benin’s proximity also made it easier for Nigeria to intervene quickly, said Vincent Foucher, senior research fellow at the National Centre for Scientific Research in France.

Benin is preparing for a presidential election in April that is expected to mark the end of Talon’s tenure.

His finance minister, Romuald Wadagni, is the candidate for the ruling coalition and is seen as the heavy favourite.

Tinubu’s office said they were involved in dislodging coup plotters from the state television channel, where soldiers claimed on Sunday morning to have toppled Talon, and from a military camp in Benin’s largest city and commercial hub Cotonou where witnesses heard explosions and gunfire on Sunday evening.

Jibrin hails Tinubu over intervention

Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, who doubles as First Deputy Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, hailed Tinubu for promptly acceding to the request of the Government of the Benin Republic, for Nigerian military intervention to thwart the coup attempt in the country.

Senator Barau, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ismail Mudashir, commended President Tinubu for his swift response to the country’s request.

Describing democracy as the best system of government, Barau said military government has no place in the modern world’s scheme of things.

The statement reads: “I commend the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, for swiftly acceding to the request of the Government of the Benin Republic, for Nigerian military intervention to foil the coup in the country.

“Military rule has no place in our society. Regardless of the situation, Democracy remains the best option for our subregion and continent. We must all work together to promote, defend and make the system work based on our peculiarities.”

Through the ECOWAS Parliament, he said that they will continue to promote legislative cooperation, democratic development, regional integration, and shared prosperity across West Africa.

Calm returns to Cotonou

Calm returned yesterday to Cotonou, Benin’s administrative center, after sporadic gunshots were heard across the city throughout Sunday, but there was heavy presence of soldiers on the streets.

Despite a history of coups following its independence from France in 1960, the tiny country has enjoyed uninterrupted democratic rule in the past two decades.

The attempted coup is the latest in a spate of coups that have rocked West Africa since 2020. Soldiers seized power last month in Guinea-Bissau after disputed election results, following Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Guinea and Gabon among the countries that have experienced similar takeovers in the past five years.

The Economic Community of West African States, the organisation representing the regional bloc of nations, said Sunday it had deployed a standby force to Benin to help preserve democracy. The troops included personnel from Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone. The size of the force remains unclear. (The Nation)