By HAN News Desk
COTONOU — Benin’s President Patrice Talon said Thursday that most of the army did not support a recent foiled coup attempt, which was orchestrated by a group of young trainee soldiers.
“No significant segment of the army joined” the December 7 attempt, Talon told reporters, referring to the incident in which soldiers appeared on national television claiming to have overthrown the president. The coup, which caused several deaths, was quickly thwarted within hours by the Beninese army, with prompt support from neighboring Nigeria.
Thirty suspects detained
About 30 people, mostly military personnel, have since been detained and face charges including treason, murder, and attacks on state security.
Talon described the event as “not a coup d’état but an attack.” He said: “It takes much more for a coup d’état. There was no popular support, and no significant segment of the army joined. The majority are not from the National Guard.”
The president explained that the plotters recruited young soldiers in training from the Togbin base, while neither the Guard’s command nor sub-command were involved. He called the plot the work of “thugs and small-scale terrorists encouraged by marginal political actors.”
Referring to the response, Talon noted that a precise military strike was needed to neutralize armored vehicles seized by the plotters. “Nigeria carried out two strikes at our request under the ECOWAS framework to avoid loss of life. If we had used our own weapons, there would have been damage,” he said.
Talon also urged neighboring countries to extradite the fleeing coup plotters. He added that leader Lieutenant Colonel Pascal Tigri left the camp in civilian clothes, while other conspirators were able to cross borders. “We have contacted the relevant countries to send them back to us,” he said.
This concise, high-level briefing comes amid ongoing efforts to stabilize security in Benin and underscores the regional support from ECOWAS in addressing such threats.
