The rebel soldiers that arrested Mali’s President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita have taken over the government and assured citizens of fresh elections to resolve a spiraling political crisis in the fragile West African nation.
They had forced Keita to resign on Tuesday and dissolved parliament hours after the President and the Prime Minister Boubou Cisse were detained at gunpoint, according to Reuters.
While addressing citizens on state television from military base in Kati, the tired-looking Keita said, “If today, certain elements of our armed forces want this to end through their intervention, do I really have a choice?”
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Back story: Nairametrics reported, on Tuesday, when fear gripped residents of Bamako, capital of Mali, as reports indicated President Keita had been allegedly detained after several gunshots were heard at an army base in Kati, which is 15 kilometres from the capital.
Following the ongoing political crisis in Mali, Prime Minister Cisse had issued a brief statement calling for dialogue and urging mutinous soldiers to stand down after they rounded up a number of senior civilian and military officials.
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What next?
It was not immediately clear who was leading the revolt, who would govern in Keita’s absence or what the mutineers wanted.
