Two senior Beninese military officers who were seized during Sunday’s attempted coup have been released, a day after the government said it had crushed the mutiny with assistance from Nigerian forces.
Calm gradually returned to Cotonou on Monday, with traffic flowing normally, according to AFP journalists.
This followed a tense Sunday during which a faction of soldiers announced on national television that they had overthrown President Patrice Talon.
President Talon later appeared on TV to reassure citizens that the situation was “completely under control.”
The 67-year-old leader is expected to leave office in April after completing his second term, even as the country continues to battle jihadist attacks in the north.
Sunday’s coup attempt adds to a wave of military takeovers in West Africa, including in Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Guinea and, most recently, Guinea-Bissau.
But unlike those countries, Benin moved swiftly to seek military support from neighbouring Nigeria.
Nigeria confirmed it had carried out airstrikes in Cotonou and deployed troops following Benin’s request.
ECOWAS also announced that forces from Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Sierra Leone were being mobilised to help safeguard constitutional rule.
The regional bloc is expected to meet in Abidjan on Monday.
Military sources told AFP that the detained officers, Chief of Army Staff Abou Issa and Army Chief Colonel Faizou Gomina, were freed overnight near the National Guard headquarters in Cotonou.
“Both of them are free,” one source said.
However, it remains unclear how many soldiers were involved in the attempted overthrow or how many are still unaccounted for.
In a national address, Talon vowed that those behind the “treacherous” plot would face justice.
Military sources reported that about a dozen soldiers had been arrested, while the alleged coup mastermind, Lieutenant Colonel Pascal Tigri, was said to be on the run.
By Monday, security presence remained visible in Cotonou, with tanks positioned in several areas.
Some roads were reopened, though a number of strategic routes remained blocked.
Local newspapers prominently featured the failed coup on their front pages.
State daily La Nation reported that “the situation is completely under control,” while Matin Libre described the coup attempt as “foiled.”
Benin’s political climate remains tense ahead of the April presidential election.
While Talon cannot constitutionally seek a third term, his preferred successor, Finance Minister Romuald Wadagni, is seen as a leading contender.
The main opposition party has been barred from the ballot for failing to meet sponsorship requirements.
Though praised internationally for boosting economic growth, Talon’s government has faced criticism for reducing political freedoms in a country once noted as a regional model for democracy.
