Benin’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Olushegun Adjadi Bakari said about 200 West African soldiers, mostly from Nigeria and Ivory Coast, were sent to Benin to support the government after a failed coup on Sunday.
The coup attempt collapsed after Nigeria sent fighter jets, which forced the rebel soldiers out of a military base and the state television station, where they had announced they were taking power.
This is the first time officials have confirmed the number of foreign troops involved. It is still unclear whether some of them have since left Benin.
The minister said on Thursday that some regional troops were still in the country to help with “sweep and clean-up” operations.
Security forces are now hunting down those involved in the plot. The leader of the failed coup is believed to have fled to neighbouring Togo.
The rebel soldiers said they acted because they were unhappy with President Patrice Talon’s leadership. They accused him of failing to deal with worsening insecurity in northern Benin.
The West African regional body, Ecowas, sent troops from Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast to protect key locations and stop any further violence.
Nigeria, which borders Benin to the east, said its troops arrived on Sunday and described the coup attempt as a serious attack on democracy.
An Ivory Coast security source told some newspapers that about 50 Ivorian soldiers were part of the regional force.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja alongside Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar Bakari said the coup had already failed by the time Benin asked for help.
He explained that Benin’s forces had already pushed the rebels back, but needed targeted air support to hit key rebel positions without harming civilians.
Tuggar said quick diplomatic, military and intelligence cooperation between Nigeria and Benin helped stop the coup.
Talks are ongoing about how long the regional troops will stay. Bakari said any decision would be made together with Benin’s security forces, whom he praised for their courage.
It is unclear whether French special forces, who reportedly helped loyal troops, are still in the country.
After several successful coups in West Africa in recent years, Ecowas is under pressure and is now showing it will not tolerate the removal of elected governments by force.
Bakari described Ecowas as a vital body for defending democracy in the region.
Benin’s army has suffered losses in recent years near its northern borders with Niger and Burkina Faso, where jihadist groups linked to Islamic State and al-Qaeda have been active.
President Talon, seen as an ally of Western countries, is expected to step down next year after completing his second term. Elections are scheduled for April.
If the coup had succeeded, it would have been the ninth successful takeover in West Africa in the past five years.
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