On Monday, May 24, hours after the announcement of the cabinet reshuffle, the situation became tense in Bamako, Mali. The Malian military was unhappy with the formation of the new government and forcibly removed the President and Prime Minister of Mali's transition to the Kati military camp.

Shortly after the announcement of the new government, the reaction of the military was swift. Without explanation, armed men forced their way into the official residence of Prime Minister Moctar Ouane. During the assault, the Prime Minister had time to make a phone call, in which he declared the presence of the military at his home, stating that "the military are currently at my home. They are taking me to the President of the Transition".

After that, President Bah N'Daw, Prime Minister Moctar Ouane and the new Minister of Defense, General Souleymane Doucoure, were taken by the military to a camp in Kati.

According to several journalistic sources, the initiators of these acts were Colonel Sadio Camara, who had just lost his position at the Ministry of Defense, and Colonel Assimi Goïta, who is the vice president of the transition.

However, at present, this military coup is not understood. Indeed, no statement has yet been made by the military to explain the cause of the events of Monday night.

The condemnation of the international community

In response to this situation, the UN mission in Mali, the Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union, France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and the European Union, announced their condemnation of these acts in a joint communiqué. For this reason, the representatives of the international community also call for the immediate and unconditional release of these civilian leaders.

For his part, the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, called on Monday in a tweet "for calm" in Mali and asked for the unconditional release of these Malian leaders of the transition. Then, in his message, he added that: "I am deeply concerned by the information on the arrest of civilian leaders in charge of the transition in Mali.

Ravaka Ny Aina

©Picture Source: Le Point

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