Story here:
Mauritania's military overthrew President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya's government and announced on the state-run news agency it would rule the country for up to two years.
In a statement issued in the name of the Military Council for Justice and Democracy, the Mauritanian military announced the armed forces have decided to end what they call the "totalitarian activities" of President Ould Taya and take power for up to two years.
President Ould Taya, who at the time was out of the country attending the funeral of Saudi Arabia's King Fadh, returned to the region and landed in nearby Niger.
Heavily armed soldiers surrounded strategic buildings at dawn in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, taking control of the airport and the national radio. Roads leading to the presidential palace were also blocked.
[...]
President Ould Taya came power in a bloodless coup in 1984, and his government claims to have foiled several attempts to overthrow him. In a coup attempt two years ago, the military attacked the presidential palace and sparked two days of violent street battles.
A West Africa analyst, Olly Owen, for the research group Global Insight, says that previous coup attempts have been accompanied by fighting among different factions of the military.
"The Presidential Guard which was the instigator in this case has been used to put down previous coup attempts," he said. "There have been purges of the army after previous coups attempts, a lot of officers imprisoned, but it doesnt seem to have had the desired effect."
President Ould Taya has established links with Washington, as well as with Israel, angering many Arabs in the country. He has also cracked down on Islamic militants and his political opposition during recent years.
From The CIA World Factbook:
Population below poverty line: 40%
Unemployment rate: 20%
Religions: Muslim 100%
Ethnic groups: mixed Maur/black 40%, Moor 30%, black 30%
Literacy: 41.7%
Population: 3,086,859
I'll admit I'm no expert on Mauritania, or its politics. I just know it's yet another Muslim country undergoing rapid political change since the "War On Terror" began.
It's a very large country with a tiny population, sitting on massive fossil fuel reserves. Perhaps a brief period of military rule, followed by an orderly transition to a truly legitimate democracy, is just what they need.
Of course, it's also possible that the military has no intention of relinquishing control in two years, or ever.
Looks like this is a country we need to keep our eyes on in the coming months and years...
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Article comments
1 - Dave Nalle
Military coups always sound like bad news, but in a surprising number of cases they lead to better government. Remember, the military are citizens too and have families and loved ones, and often speak as a popular expression of that extended network of dissatisfied people.
Dave
2 - Aaman
So, he's, like, the new Prisoner of Zenda?
3 - Balletshooz
This is unfortunately a bad coup because this dictator was friendly to Israel and the US and he was holding down and opressing radical islamists.
This country will go the way of al-qaeda if a democracy comes through. It may be one of the few places where a military dictatorship is desirable to democracy from the US perspective.
4 - Dave Nalle
>>It may be one of the few places where a military dictatorship is desirable to democracy from the US perspective.<<
It may be one of the places where military dictatorship is desirable for the US, but I submit that the number of such places is not 'few'.
In many cases a relatively open and capitalistic military dictatorship is a better way to run a poor and undeveloped country than democracy.
Dave
5 - troll
holy fascista nalle
who is this 'open and capitalistic military dictatorship' better for
must be that 'we' you talk about - the (s)elected US government
can we now expect the Admin to back off from democracy in Iraq and advocate a dictatorship...I sure hope so
quite a tastey morsal...come back anytime
troll