Mali coup soldiers take to airwaves, promise elections
Published:Wednesday | August 19, 2020 | 9:38 AM
BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — The Malian soldiers who forced President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita to resign in a coup promised early Wednesday to organise new elections after their takeover was swiftly condemned by the international community.
In a statement carried overnight on state broadcaster ORTM, the mutinous soldiers who staged Tuesday’s coup identified themselves as the National Committee for the Salvation of the People led by Colonel Major Ismael Wagué.
“With you, standing as one, we can restore this country to its former greatness,” Wagué said, announcing that borders were closed and that a curfew was going into effect from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
“We, the patriotic forces grouped together within the National Committee for the Salvation of the People, have decided to take our responsibilities before the people and before history,” he said, vowing to maintain the stability of the state and public services.
Wague said the committee will implement a transition to civil political rule with elections held in a “reasonable amount of time.”
He reassured that all international agreements will still be respected and that international forces including the UN mission in Mali and G5 Sahel will remain in place “for the restoration of stability.”
There was no word on the future of the now former President Keita.
The news of Keita’s departure was met with jubilation by anti-government demonstrators in the capital, Bamako, and alarm by former colonial ruler France, and other allies and foreign nations.
The UN Security Council scheduled a closed meeting Wednesday afternoon to discuss the unfolding situation in Mali, where the UN has a 15,600-strong peacekeeping mission.
The West African regional bloc ECOWAS said it was sending a high-level delegation to “ensure immediate return to constitutional order.”
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