Troops stage coup in Mauritania

[Simfan34 11]

Troops stage coup in Mauritania

An army statement said the president was no longer in charge

Troops in Mauritania have overthrown the government and say they have formed a state council to rule the country.

President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi and Prime Minister Yahia Ould Ahmed El-Ouakef were held after the president sacked several senior army officers.

Soldiers have been seen on the streets of the capital, Nouakchott, but there have been no reports of fighting.

The country staged free and fair elections in June 2007, two years after a military coup.

However, the country has been gripped by political crisis for a fortnight, after a vote of no confidence in the cabinet.

On Tuesday, 48 MPs walked out of the ruling party.

Unusual troop movements

Earlier on Wednesday, President Abdallahi replaced several senior army officers, including the head of the presidential guard, Gen Ould Abdelaziz.

Shortly afterwards, Gen Abdelaziz led soldiers in a coup against the president.

Officials loyal to the general said all the officers sacked by the president had been re-instated.

A statement issued by them also said Mr Abdallahi was no longer president of Mauritania and that Gen Abdelaziz would head the new state council.

The first indications of a military coup came as state television was taken off the air amid reports of unusual troop movements in the capital, Nouakchott.

The president's daughter, Amal Mint Cheikh Abdallahi, said soldiers seized her father at his house at 0920 local time (0920 GMT).

Political instability

Mauritania is one of the world's poorest nations as well as its newest oil producer.

The desert nation, a former French colony of more than three million people, has been looking to oil revenues to boost its economy.

Presidential elections held in 2007 ended a two-year period of military rule - the product of a coup in 2005.

The elections were deemed to have been free and fair and appeared to herald a new era of democracy.

Earlier this year, however, the president dismissed the government amid protests over soaring food prices.

The cabinet that replaced it has been dogged by instability, lacking the support of a moderate Islamist party and a major opposition group that were in the former government. quote>

Country profile: Mauritania

 

One of Africa's newest oil producers, Mauritania bridges the Arab Maghreb and western sub-Saharan Africa.

The largely-desert country presents a cultural contrast, with an Arab-Berber population to the north and black Africans to the south. Many of its people are nomads.

Overview

• Overview
• Facts
• Leaders
• Media

In the Middle Ages Mauritania was the cradle of the Almoravid movement, which spread Islam throughout the region and for a while controlled the Islamic part of Spain. European traders began to show interest in Mauritania in the 15th century and in 1814 it came under direct French rule.

AT-A-GLANCE Politics: A coup in 2005 ended President Taya's two decades of authoritarian rule; presidential polls in March 2007 marked a major step in the transition towards democracy Economy: Mauritania depends heavily on drought-prone agriculture; its rich coastal fishing grounds are threatened by over-exploitation; offshore oil exploitation began in 2006 International: Mauritania is an ally of the US in its "war on terror" and has ties with Israel Timeline

Morocco opposed the country's independence in 1960 and for a time tried to absorb it. But Morocco's King Hassan II later improved ties as part of his plan to divide Western Sahara.

The eventual deal in 1976 brought more problems, though, with Mauritania coming under attack by Polisario Front guerrillas, who opposed Moroccan control of Western Sahara, and the subsequent downfall of the leader since independence - Moktar Ould Daddah - in a military coup.

Peace was agreed with the Polisario in 1979, but this in turn worsened relations with Morocco, until a detente in 1985. More recently, ties with Senegal have been strained over the use of the Senegal River, which forms the border between the two countries.

Mauritania officially banned slavery in 1981. The government has denied accusations that it is still being practised.

One of the world's poorest countries, Mauritania has pinned hopes for future prosperity on the exploitation of its offshore reserves of oil and natural gas. The Chinguetti and Tiof fields are expected to yield millions of barrels of oil.

The country forged diplomatic ties with Israel in 1999, one of three Arab nations to have done so. Under its former president, Mauritania was an ally of the US in its "war on terror". American special forces were despatched to train Mauritanian troops.

Facts

• Overview
• Facts
• Leaders
• Media

• Full name: The Islamic Republic of Mauritania
• Population: 3.1 million (UN, 2007)
• Capital: Nouakchott
• Area: 1.04 million sq km (398,000 sq miles)
• Major languages: Arabic (official), French, others
• Major religion: Islam
• Life expectancy: 62 years (men), 66 years (women) (UN)
• Monetary unit: 1 ouguiya = 5 khoums
• Main exports: Fish and fish products, iron ore, gold
• GNI per capita: US $560 (World Bank, 2006)
• Internet domain: .mr
• International dialling code: +222

Leaders

• Overview
• Facts
• Leaders
• Media

President: Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi

Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi won run-off elections in March 2007 to become Mauritania's first democratically elected president since the country gained independence from France in 1960.

Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi

The elections were the final stage of a democratic handover to civilian rule by a military junta which took power in a 2005 coup.

The polls were given a clean bill of health by the European Union and US observers. Mauritania has experienced 10 coups or attempted coups since independence. Previous elections were widely viewed as rigged.

Mr Abdallahi vowed during his campaign that remaining cases of slavery would be severely punished, and that former slaves and their descendants would benefit from positive discrimination.

He also promised to promote national unity, encourage job creation and to improve health, education and infrastructure.

Mr Abdallahi was minister of finance in one previous administration and minister of fishing under Maaouiya Ould Sid Ahmed Taya, who was ousted in 2005. He fell out with Taya in 1987 and spent six months under house arrest.

Observers have suggested that among his challenges will be to ensure that the military, who seized power before mapping out the route to civilian rule, keep out of politics.

Shortly after taking office he said he would take a pay cut of 25% because of lower than expected oil revenues.

Media

• Overview
• Facts
• Leaders
• Media

Mauritania's TV and radio stations are state-owned. Their coverage strongly favours the government and opposition access to radio is limited.

A Mauritanian newspaper vendor

An FM relay of Radio France Internationale in the capital was shut down in 2000 after the authorities accused the station of negative reporting. The ban was lifted in late 2005.

The BBC is available on FM in the capital (106.9) and in Nouadhibou (102.4).

Under Mauritania's press law, newspapers may be banned for publishing material that "undermines" Islam or is perceived to threaten national security.

The press

• Chaab - state-run daily, in Arabic
• Horizons - state-run daily, in French
• Journal Officiel - government journal of record
• Le Calame - private weekly
• L'Eveil-Hebdo - private weekly
• Rajoul Echaree - private
• Akhbar Nouakchott - private daily
• Nouakchott Info - private daily

Television

• Mauritanian TV - state-run, programmes in Arabic, French and local languages
• Radio
• Radio Mauritanie - state-run

News agency

• Mauritanian News Agency (AMI) - state-run quote>

Timeline: Mauritania

A chronology of key events:

3rd-7th centuries AD - Berber and Arab migrants displace the original inhabitants of present-day Mauritania.

ROAD TO DEMOCRACY Mauritania sets new course after years of authoritarian rule 2005 - Iron-fisted Ould Taya is ousted 2005 - Military maps out reform 2006 - Voters opt for new constitution 2007 - Presidential polls mark return to civilian rule First steps to democracy

9-10th centuries - Empire of Ghana has its capital in present-day south-west Mauritania.

1076 - Berber Almoravid warriors defeat the Empire of Ghana.

1500s - European mariners and traders establish settlements.

1644-74 - Mauritanian Thirty-Year War: Berbers unsuccessful in repelling Arab warriors.

1850s-60s - French forces gain control of southern Mauritania. In 1898 France wins the allegiance of Moors in the region.

1904 - France establishes Mauritania as a colonial territory.

1920 - Mauritania becomes part of French West Africa, and is administered from Senegal.

1946 - Becomes a French overseas territory.

1957 - Nouakchott established as the capital.

Independence

1958 - Mauritania becomes self-governing.

1960 28 November - Mauritania becomes independent.

1960 - Mauritania makes territorial claims to neighbouring Spanish Sahara.

The Sahara desert occupies most of Mauritania

1973 - Mauritania joins the Arab League.

1976 - Mauritania and Morocco divide up Spanish Sahara, now known as Western Sahara, after Spain pulls out. Guerrillas of the Polisario front, aiming to establish an independent state in the territory, fight the forces of both countries.

Military coup

1978 - First post-independence president, Moktar Daddah, is deposed in a military coup. The coup is prompted partly by the struggle against Polisario guerrillas and resulting financial strains.

1979 - Mauritania signs a peace agreement with the Polisario front and renounces its claim to Western Sahara. Morocco annexes Mauritania's former share of the territory.

1981 - Attempted coup; Moroccan involvement is alleged and Mauritania breaks ties with the country.

1984 - Coup brings Colonel Maaouiya Ould Sid Ahmed Taya to power.

Mohamed Haidallah: Ex-president was accused of coup plot 2003: Mauritanian ex-president sentenced 2003: Election tension in Mauritania

1989 - Race riots erupt in Mauritania and Senegal after a border dispute. Tens of thousands of black Mauritanians are driven out of the country into Senegal. Others become the targets of attacks and land seizures. Hundreds of people are killed.

1992 - Taya elected president.

1993 - US ends development aid over Mauritania's treatment of its black population and its support for Iraq in the 1991 Gulf War.

1997 - President Taya re-elected in a poll boycotted by the main opposition parties.

2001 September - Morocco's King Mohammed visits - a turning point in the often-strained relations between the two countries.

2002 January - Opposition party Action for Change, which campaigns for greater rights for blacks and descendants of slaves, is banned.

2002 June - Country granted $1.1bn (£740m) in debt relief.

Coup plots

2003 June - Attempted coup: Troops loyal to President Maaouiya Ould Taya regain control of the capital after heavy fighting with rebel soldiers.

Locusts devoured crops in 2004, prompting UN call for food aid 2004: Locusts invade Mauritania capital

2003 October - First post-independence president, Moktar Ould Daddah, dies in Paris.

2003 November - President Taya re-elected with 67% of vote in first round of elections. Opposition alleges fraud.

2003 December - Former President Haidallah is fined and given suspended prison sentence for plotting coup.

2004 August - Army officers arrested in wake of alleged coup plot.

2004 September - Government says it has foiled a coup plot - the third in 15 months. In October President Taya accuses Libya and Burkina Faso of financing recent coup attempts.

2005 January - UN calls for food aid in the wake of locust invasions in 2004. Mauritania was the African country worst hit, with its crop production obliterated.

2005 June - Attack on an army base in the Sahara kills 15 soldiers. The government blames insurgents from Algeria.

In search of a better life Enlarge Image

2005 3 August - With President Taya out of the country, troops seize government buildings and a group of officers announces the overthrow of the president and the formation of a military council.

2006 February - Offshore oil production begins.

2006 June - Voters in a referendum approve constitutional changes which will limit the president to two five-year terms in office.

2006 November - Parliamentary, municipal polls.

2007 January - Senatorial elections.

2007 March - Presidential elections won by Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi.

2007 April - Mauritania is readmitted to the African Union, having been suspended after the 2005 coup.

2007 August - Parliament outlaws slavery, a practise still widespread in spite of a 1981 ban.

2008 January - The 2008 Dakar Rally is cancelled following the murder of four French tourists in Mauritania in December, allegedly by attackers linked to al-Qaeda.

2008 February - Gunmen fire at the Israeli embassy in the capital, Nouakchott. Seven people detained over attack released for lack of evidence.

2008 April - Eight al-Qaeda suspects alleged to have been involved in killing of French tourists and attack on Israeli embassy are arrested.

2008 May - Members of moderate Islamist opposition party join government for first time. quote>

© MMVIII

[fukuda 351]

Nice, just what western africa needed....

[belfastuniguy 18]

Does Africa never learn.

These things do not generally end well and will only result in further oppressive and awful living standards. Africa should be supporting its democratic governments and this coup should be widely condemned. Though I'm pretty damn sure African nations shall once again put their fingers in their ears and run round screaming 'la-la-la-la-la-la-la'

Some parts of Africa in my honest opinion is somewhat of a lost cause I think we should stop wasting money and time on governments that won't change and those that support military coups, especially one aimed at a democratically elected government.

[coolotter88 2]

why don't Mauritanians ever learn? It's called abolishing the military.

see dominica, they were like, "oh, keeping a military that will overthrow you isn't a good idea, lets disband it"

[Zelgadis 638]

I don't know about all that... I had some students who were refugees from Mauretania. Somehow, I have a feeling, judging from some of the things they told me, that this might actually be better.

ISF

[belfastuniguy 18]

why don't Mauritanians ever learn? It's called abolishing the military.quote>

Yeah and leave your nation defenceless in Africa, not a smart move in a place drowning in corruption and civil wars.

[Easy Bakes 253]

The definition of an unstable regime.

Looks like every 3 years the place changes hands.

[SimRabbit 48]

What's the point of this?

The only thing we'll see is more corruption and violence.

The new leader will eventually become a dictator and the same crap repeats itself.

[The_Dalai_Llama 15]

Man they love their military coups in Mauritania, huh? It's a shame much of Africa is run by brutal regimes and militant groups just looking for power.

[Patricius Maximus 236]

Not much point grumbling about it, because probably in a few years a new regime will take it's place.

All that I can say is I hope that this will turn out better for the Mauritanians. If not, they'll just have another coup.