00:00President Bola Ahmed Tanubu of Nigeria has expressed happiness that Nigeria troops both air and land soldiers have successfully foiled the coup attempt in Benin Republic on Sunday, saying,
00:12Latest report from the Benin Republic indicated that Colonel Pascal Tigre, the leader of the mutineers who seized the country's national television on Sunday, is on the run and some other members of the group have been arrested as the defense and security forces in the country thwarted the attempted push.
00:29And, according to the Nigeria president, Nigeria government acted on two separate requests from the government of Benin Republic, saying,
00:38President Tanubu, first ordered Nigerian air force fighter jets to enter the country and take over the airspace to help dislodge the coup plotters from the national TV and a military camp where they had regrouped,
00:51and secondly ordered ground troops into the Benin Republic territory which the Nigeria military troops have been confirmed to have taken positions in both air and land space in the Benin Republic with some local residents saying a few minutes ago that the gun battle is still ongoing.
01:08Bayo Onanuga, the spokesperson to the Nigeria president in a number of statements on Sunday said,
01:14Coup in Benin fails. Mutineers in military uniform, who attempted to overthrow President Patrice Talon's democratic government on Sunday in the Republic of Benin, have failed.
01:27The mutineers seized the national TV after failing to enter President Talon's residence.
01:32The latest report from Cotonou said the National Guard has taken control of the situation and surrounded the television station.
01:40According to 24 Hours in Benin, discussions are underway with the mutineers, now holed up inside the station.
01:48Benin's interior minister, Alassane Sidhu says the country's armed forces have thwarted an attempted coup.
01:55His statement came after soldiers appeared on state television and announced the removal of President Patrice Talon,
02:02the closure of borders and suspension of political parties.
02:05President Bola Ahmed Tanubu has commended the gallantry of Nigeria's military on Sunday for responding swiftly to the request by the government of Benin Republic
02:15to save its 35-year-old democracy from coup plotters who struck at dawn today.
02:21Acting on two separate requests from the government of Benin,
02:25President Tanubu first ordered Nigerian Air Force fighter jets to enter the country and take over the airspace
02:31to help dislodge the coup plotters from the national TV and a military camp where they had regrouped.
02:37The Republic of Benin, through its Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a note verbal, requested immediate Nigerian air support,
02:45in view of the urgency and seriousness of the situation and to safeguard the constitutional order,
02:51protect national institutions and ensure the security of the population.
02:55In the second request, the authorities in Benin requested the deployment of Nigerian Air Force assets
03:02within Beninoy's airspace for surveillance and rapid intervention operations under Benin-led coordination.
03:09The Benin government also requested Nigerian ground forces,
03:13strictly for missions approved by the Beninese Command Authority
03:16in support of the protection of constitutional institutions and the containment of armed groups.
03:21Nigeria's chief of defense staff, General Olafemi Oliade,
03:27said all the requests have been fulfilled, with Nigerian ground forces now in Benin.
03:33Ours is to comply with the order of the commander-in-chief of our armed forces, President Tanubu, he said.
03:40Constitutional order was upended in the Republic of Benin, Nigeria's neighbor,
03:44when some soldiers led by Colonel Pascal Tigre announced a coup on Sunday morning.
03:50The putschists seized the national TV and claimed they had toppled President Patrice Talon and suspended
03:56all democratic institutions.
03:59It took some hours before the government's loyal forces, assisted by Nigeria,
04:04took control and flushed out the coup plotters from the national TV.
04:09In his remarks after the restoration of the democratic and constitutional order,
04:13President Tanubu saluted the Nigerian armed forces for standing firm as a protector and defender of democracy.
04:21Today, the Nigerian armed forces stood gallantly as a defender and protector of constitutional order
04:27in the Republic of Benin on the invitation of the government.
04:30Our armed forces acted within the ambit of the ECHOAS protocol on democracy and good governance.
04:36They have helped stabilize a neighboring country and have made us proud of their commitment to
04:42sustaining our democratic values and ideals since 1999.
04:47Nigeria stands firmly with the government and people of the Republic of Benin.
04:52The latest report from the Benin Republic said Colonel Pascal Tigre,
04:56the leader of the mutineers who seized the country's national TV on Sunday, is on the run.
05:02However, some other members of the group have been arrested as the defense and security forces
05:08in the country thwarted the attempted putsch.
05:11Benin's interior minister, Alasane Sidhu has appeared on national TV to announce that the coup has been thwarted.
05:18Early on Sunday morning, 7 December 2025, a small group of soldiers launched a mutiny aimed at
05:26destabilizing the state and its institutions.
05:28Faced with this situation, the Beninese armed forces and their leadership,
05:33true to their oath, remained committed to the Republic.
05:37Their response allowed them to retain control of the situation and foil the attempt.
05:42The government therefore urges the population to go about their activities as normal.
05:48Omiele Saware, the founder of Sahara Reporters News Media and a human rights activist,
05:53in a statement on Sunday, said, the so-called coups in Guinea-Bissau and the latest episode
05:59in the Benin Republic share disturbing similarities.
06:03In Guinea-Bissau, the phony coup unfolded after a criminal former president effectively invited
06:08the military to intervene to avoid announcing elections and relinquishing power to an opposition
06:13figure with a popular mandate.
06:16It was not a seizure of power to restore order, but a manipulation of force to escape democratic progress.
06:22The situation in Benin raises equally troubling questions.
06:27There are strong indications that President Patrice Talon, a deeply shady figure and a close ally of
06:33Asawadjubola Ahmed Tanubu, may have been aware of the coup plot, allowed it to unfold, and then used it
06:39as a political diversion to shift public attention away from his growing unpopularity.
06:44In this sense, instability becomes a calculated tool of political survival rather than an unforeseen
06:51threat to democracy.
06:53Of course, I am opposed to military rule in all its forms.
06:57I am allergic to it.
06:59Whether invited, staged, or exploited, coups are never a solution to political failure.
07:05The answer to bad civilian leadership is not guns, military jackboots, and camouflage, but
07:11accountability, popular struggle, and genuine democracy.
07:16It would be recalled that a group of soldiers appeared on Benin's national television on Sunday
07:21morning claiming to have seized power.
07:23The group, which called itself the Military Committee for Re-Foundation, announced the removal
07:29of President Patrice Talon and all state institutions.
07:32Lt. Col. Pascal Tigray was thereafter appointed President of the Military Committee, according
07:38to the soldier.
07:40The signal of the national television was cut later in the morning.
07:44The French embassy said on X that, gunfire was reported at Camp Gezzo, near the President's
07:50official residence and urged French citizens to remain indoors.
07:54Shortly after the soldier's declaration, a source close to Talon told AFP the
07:59President was safe and the regular army was regaining control.
08:04Benin's Foreign Minister Alushagan Ajadi Bakari also told Reuters, the situation is under
08:10control, while government spokesperson Wilfried Hungbeji told AFP, everything is fine, according
08:16to Al Jazeera News Network.
08:18Osa Suwakon Nebel, bringing you the news in a more digital way.
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