A swift, albeit unsettling, coup attempt shook the administration of President Patrice Talon in Bénin. In the early hours of Sunday, December 7th, a faction of renegade soldiers briefly seized control of the state broadcaster, SRTB, in Cotonou, announcing on air that they had removed the president from power. President Talon, aged 67, who is scheduled to conclude his decade-long tenure in April 2026, was promptly moved to safety. Concurrently, loyal military units systematically reclaimed critical strategic locations. Security sources indicated that the mutineers initially tried to storm his private residence in the Guézo district but were repelled. By late morning, Cotonou, Bénin’s economic hub, was under stringent surveillance, with helicopters patrolling overhead and ground patrols traversing its streets, as stability gradually returned throughout the day. This unexpected event marked Bénin’s first coup attempt since Mathieu Kérékou successfully took power in 1972.
In a concise address broadcast Sunday evening during the 8 PM national news, Patrice Talon acknowledged, “Our nation today experienced events of extreme gravity. This act of betrayal will not go unpunished.” The president also disclosed that several individuals were still being held by fleeing mutineers, underscoring the urgent need to fully secure the situation and safeguard citizens.
Adding to the tragic toll, the wife of General Bertin Bada, who serves as the president’s military cabinet director, was killed during the assault on their home in Abomey-Calavi. The daughter of this trusted official, who was promoted to air force general last June, also sustained injuries from the assailants’ gunfire.
The sequence of events began, as summarized by the Interior Minister midday: “In the early morning of Sunday, December 7, 2025, a small group of soldiers initiated a mutiny with the aim of destabilizing the state and its institutions. In response, the Béninese Armed Forces and their command, steadfast in their oath, upheld their republican duty. Their decisive counter-response allowed them to maintain control of the situation and foil the maneuver. Consequently, the Government urges the populace to resume their normal activities,” declared Alassane Seidou.
Foreign Minister Olushegun Adjadi Bakari clarified that the majority of soldiers remained loyal to the president, and only “a small group” had attempted to seize power.
Since then, multiple corroborating security sources have confirmed the apprehension of at least a dozen military personnel, including the alleged instigators of the attempted putsch, as well as an individual previously discharged from the Béninese army.
Mutineers target presidential sites
The initial explosions resonated at dawn. According to several security sources, a group of soldiers, reportedly supported by “external elements” identified as mercenaries, first attempted to breach the residences of high-ranking officers before advancing towards the president’s home and the presidential palace, ultimately taking control of the public television station. On set, staff were held at gunpoint while the mutineers recorded a message. In this declaration, the insurgents claimed to be acting on behalf of Lieutenant-Colonel Pascal Tigri, announced the formation of a “Military Committee for Refoundation” under his leadership, and proclaimed Patrice Talon “removed from his duties,” just months before his official term was set to conclude.
Lieutenant-Colonel Tigri further stated that the Constitution and all national institutions were suspended, and that “the national army would exercise, until further notice, the full powers vested in the State of Bénin.” He justified this action by citing a desire to end, in his view, “Patrice Talon’s governance and the deprivation of certain citizens’ rights to choose their candidate,” also condemning “crisis-generating laws,” “the exile of certain citizens,” and “widespread arrests.”
Swift reactions came from the United States and French embassies. The American embassy issued an alert to its citizens, mentioning “exchanges of gunfire” in the Guézo district, where the president’s private residence is located. The French embassy similarly advised its citizens to exercise extreme caution.
However, the attempted power grab was rapidly challenged on the ground. Shortly after the mutineers’ declaration, heavy exchanges of fire erupted around the port and the presidential palace. Elements of the Republican Guard, who remained loyal to the head of state, launched a counter-offensive to reclaim strategic positions. Access to the marina, home to the presidential palace, was immediately sealed off, while helicopters patrolled the area and several major thoroughfares in Cotonou were closed. The Béninese government requested assistance from the Nigerian army, which dispatched fighter jets and ground troops to secure the public television station and a military camp seized by the mutineers.
Uncertainty and tension grip the capital
For several hours, a fog of uncertainty prevailed. Rumors spread faster than verified facts, amplified by platforms like TikTok, Facebook, and WhatsApp groups, which served as the primary information channels while authorities delayed official statements. Amidst this informational haze, everyone sought to comprehend the true unfolding of events in the capital.
By early afternoon, the sounds of gunfire had subsided, and police units occupied major intersections in the city center. Contacted by Le Point Afrique, several witnesses described an atmosphere tinged with both apprehension and restraint. “We still don’t know exactly what happened,” whispered a resident from the Cimetière PK-14 district. Other Béninese citizens pondered the implications and feared potential repercussions.
For a nation long considered an oasis of stability in West Africa, this Bénin coup attempt served as a stark wake-up call. Occurring just ten days after a coup in Guinea-Bissau and less than two months after one in Madagascar, Bénin now joins the growing roster of democratic regimes in the region facing military threats, including Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Guinea, and, last month, for the ninth time since 2020, Guinea-Bissau.
Regional condemnations and troop deployment
The attempted putsch immediately drew condemnation from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU). The AU denounced the act “firmly and unequivocally” as an assault on constitutional order and urged the implicated military personnel to return to their barracks. In a statement disseminated on X, the Chairperson of the pan-African Commission, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, implored “all actors involved in this attempt” to “immediately” cease all illegal actions and “return without delay to their professional obligations.”
For its part, ECOWAS announced Sunday evening the deployment of troops to Bénin, following the rapid thwarting of the coup attempt by authorities. The regional organization specified that it had “ordered the immediate deployment of elements of the Standby Force,” with contingents originating from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire, and Ghana, to bolster “the government and republican army of Bénin” and “preserve constitutional order.”
Presidential election and security: Bénin on the edge
With the April presidential election marking the conclusion of his term approaching, Patrice Talon navigates a tense political landscape. The northern regions of Bénin continue to be afflicted by jihadist attacks linked to Al-Qaeda, with 54 soldiers killed there last April.
Politically, the incumbent president, a former businessman and cotton magnate who has been in power since 2016, is set to depart the scene at the end of his second and final term, as mandated by the Constitution. However, he has meticulously planned his succession; the ruling coalition (Bloc Républicain (BR) and UP-R), which has strengthened over the years, has already designated his successor: Finance Minister Romuald Wadagni, a cornerstone of the economic policies implemented over the past decade.
The constitutional revision adopted last month, which establishes a Senate and extends presidential and legislative terms from five to seven years, continues to fuel intense debate and criticism. The disqualification of the main opposition party’s candidate, Les Démocrates, further solidifies the advantage of the incumbent camp, even though the two-term limit remains in effect. Just months before the presidential election, this reform is a focal point of escalating tensions.
According to sources close to the matter, the mutineers harbored political grievances against the current administration, criticizing what they perceive as exclusionary governance. The question of potential masterminds behind this Bénin coup attempt also remains unresolved, potentially uncovering deeper tensions within the Béninese military and political sphere.