Military tension rippled through Benin on Sunday as a group of soldiers identifying themselves as the Military Committee for Refoundation (CMR) declared they had removed President Patrice Talon from office. Their statement, broadcast on state television, claimed the committee had met and resolved that “Mr. Patrice Talon is removed from office as president of the republic.”
The declaration unfolded against a backdrop of mounting instability across West Africa, mirroring recent coups in Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau, and echoing earlier military takeovers in neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso.
The French Embassy reported gunfire at Camp Guezo, close to Talon’s official residence in Cotonou, urging French nationals to remain indoors.
Yet Talon’s camp swiftly countered the coup claim. The president, who has led Benin for nearly a decade and is expected to step down in April, was “safe,” according to his entourage.
“This is a small group of people who only control the television. The regular army is regaining control. The city and the country are completely secure,” his office told AFP.
Benin’s political trajectory has been punctuated by coups and attempted coups since independence, though the country has enjoyed relative stability in recent decades. Talon, 67, a wealthy businessman known as the “cotton king,” rose to power in 2016 and is serving the final stretch of his second and constitutionally final term, which ends in 2026.
With the main opposition party barred from contesting the upcoming presidential race, the ruling party is set to face what officials describe as a “moderate” opposition. While Talon has been credited with revitalising the economy, critics accuse him of centralising power and shrinking democratic space.
