Coup d'état against the Tuareg rebellion of 2012
The 2012 Malian coup d'état began on 21 March that year, when mutinying Malian soldiers, displeased with the management of the Tuareg rebellion, attacked several locations in the capital Bamako, including the presidential palace, state television, and military barracks. The soldiers, who said they had formed the National Committee for the Restoration of Democracy and State, declared the following day that they had overthrown the government of Amadou Toumani Touré, forcing him into hiding. The coup was followed by "unanimous" international condemnation, harsh sanctions by Mali's neighbors, and the swift loss of northern Mali to Tuareg forces, leading Reuters to describe the coup as "a spectacular own-goal". On 6 April, the junta agreed with Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) negotiators that they would step down from power in return for the end of sanctions, giving power to a transitional government led by parliament speaker Dioncounda Traoré. In the following days, both Touré and coup leader Amadou Sanogo formally resigned; however, as of 16 May, the junta was still "widely thought to have maintained overall control". On 3 December 2013, a mass grave was discovered in Diago holding the remains of 21 soldiers that went missing the year before, loyal to the ousted president.
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Background.
Tuareg rebels launched a major offensive against Mali's security forces and military in a bid to seize the northern town of Kidal on 6 February 2012. Some loyalist Tuareg fled to the city of Bamako, fearing reprisals after violent demonstrations in the first week of February. The Tuareg rebels had been bolstered by an influx of battle-hardened, well-armed fighters returning from the Libyan Civil War, to which they had traveled to fight for Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader who was deposed and killed. On 8 February, the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) seized the Mali-Algeria border town of Tinzaouaten as Malian soldiers crossed into Algeria. Islamist Ansar Dine demanded the imposition of Islamic law in northern Mali, while the secular Tuareg nationalist Azawad National Liberation Movement (MNLA) have stated they want an autonomous, if not completely independent, homeland.
The coup attempt followed weeks of protests of the government's handling of a nomad-led rebellion in the country's north, which had dropped Touré's popularity to "a new low". Soldiers demanded more weapons and resources for their campaign against the rebels, and were dissatisfied with a lack of government support for the army, some soldiers having been sent to the front without sufficient food. Touré was to leave office when his term expires after the presidential election in April.
Factors that led to the coup:
Timeline.
Early events.
21 March.
On 21 March, defence minister Brigadier General Sadio Gassama went to the Kati military camp, north of Bamako, to defuse a protest planned for the next day by soldiers of the camp against perceived bad management of the conflict with the Tuareg rebellion in the north of Mali. He was met with boos and stones were thrown at his car. He was sequestered, and his guards fired warning shots in the air. The minister was released thanks to the intervention of the Kati zone commander "("commandant de zone")". The soldiers then stormed the weapons and ammunition reserves of the camp. Two soldiers were injured, but the presidency said Gassama was neither injured nor arrested.
Later that day, armored vehicles sealed off the presidential palace, and reporters heard 10 minutes of automatic gunfire near the headquarters of the Malian state broadcaster, whose programmes went off the air. Soldiers blocked the path to the buildings. The Associated Press spoke with a soldier who said that when soldiers entered the palace, Touré's bodyguards did not defend the building. The mutinying soldiers searched the area for Touré, but he was not caught.
In the evening, after several hours, Mali's state broadcaster ORTM came back on the air with a brief message displayed against a backdrop of traditional Malian music and dance. "In a moment, there will be a statement by the military", the message read. A riot broke out at a military garrison near the northern town of Gao, and a military student reportedly said recruits had shot into the air and took several of their senior commanding officers hostage.
22 March.
Angry soldiers took over the capital city, Bamako. In the morning, Amadou Konare went on state television which identified him as the spokesperson of the National Committee for the Restoration of Democracy and State (CNRDR), formed by the renegade soldiers. Konare declared that the soldiers had seized power from 'the incompetent regime of Amadou Toumani Touré' and said it would look to hand over power to a new, democratically elected government.
Later, Captain Amadou Sanogo, identified as CNRDR's president, also went on state television to declare a dusk-to-dawn curfew "until further notice". He urged calm and condemned any pillaging. Soldiers were unable to find Touré. In the morning, Kenya's foreign minister, who was visiting Mali at the time, reported that Bamako airport had been closed and that he could hear gunfire. Sanogo also declared the land and air borders of Mali closed until further notice.
A military official loyal to the President said the President was in good health, and that the Interior and the Defense Ministers were also safe – contrary to earlier reports that the defense minister had been arrested. Foreign Minister Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga was among several ministers arrested after rebels seized the Presidential palace and other parts of the capital. Amnesty International reported that Prime Minister Cissé Mariam Kaïdama Sidibé had been arrested, and that the detained ministers were being held at the military camp in Kati.
Later in the day it was revealed the president had sought refuge at an undisclosed army base with loyal soldiers. The BBC reported that the Malian Army's elite force, the Red Berets, was still loyal to Touré. Loyalists confirmed that Touré was "safe and in command" at a military camp somewhere in Bamako, under protection from his "Red Berets", a parachute regiment which he formerly served in.
Rebel soldiers said during the evening they intended to launch an assault on the loyalist army camp in the capital.
As the day progressed, the rebel soldiers looted the Presidential Palace, taking TVs and other goods, while their leader urged them to stop the celebratory gunfire, which had been responsible for at least 20 injuries in the capital.
Tuareg advance.
Inspired in part by the diversion caused by the military coup, Tuareg rebels in the country's north launched incursions deeper into Mali, seizing towns and bases formerly held by government forces fighting the conflict that caused the coup. As military forces were engaged in consolidating their hold on the capital, the rebels were able to push southward with little opposition. According to the MNLA, Malian army forces retreated to Gao.
23 March.
The African Union suspended Mali, until "effective restoration of constitutional order is achieved without delay".
Several African leaders said they had been in touch with the ousted Malian president and that he was still safe and under the protection of forces that remained loyal to him at an undisclosed location outside Bamako.
During the day, there were fears by the rebels that the Red Berets were preparing a counterattack against the TV station, and rebel forces set up defensive positions to repel the expected assault. The TV network went off the air several times as gunfire erupted around the station.
According to the BBC's West Africa correspondent, a large number of low-ranking soldiers, possibly the majority, supported the coup, while the majority of the army's officers had not come out publicly to support the coup. Captain Sonogo said in an interview with the BBC that "We are not here to confiscate any power but we are here to have an army and security forces available to assume the national security... So once this has been fixed, I'll be able to say 'Ok, go for election' in a short period of time. I promise." A joint African Union and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) diplomatic mission met representatives of the junta, according to Mali's state television service.
A group of prominent Malian political figures made an announcement condemning the coup as "a step backwards", including presidential candidate Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta. Political parties that condemned the coup included the Alliance for Democracy in Mali, the Union for the Republic and Democracy, the Patriotic Movement for Renewal, the Union for Democracy and Development, the Union of Democratic Forces for Progress, the Solidarity and Progress Party, the Democracy and Justice Party, and the Party for Democracy and Progress.
A total of 14 government officials and ministers were held hostage in the Kati military barracks outside Bamako.
The Tuareg rebels and the Islamist rebel group Ansar Dine said they had surrounded Kidal. An official statement from the group read: "Thanks to Allah the Almighty and his blessings, we will soon take our land in Kidal."
24 March.
Sanogo stated that no soldiers of the Malian army remained loyal to Touré, describing himself as "in total control". However, an anonymous source from Sanogo's staff stated that Touré continued to be protected by members of the parachute battalion that had formed his presidential guard. Meanwhile, "The New York Times" reported an observer describing the situation as "very fluid", and that rumours of a counter-coup continued throughout the day, exacerbated by the hour-long disappearance of the Malian television signal the previous night. A US State Department official also noted that Mali faced a "near-total cutoff of foreign assistance", on which the nation is heavily dependent.
Following reports that men in police and military uniforms were looting shops and stealing cars in Bamako, Sanogo appeared on national television to denounce the "vandalism and pillaging" and state that the perpetrators were opposition forces impersonating soldiers in order to turn public opinion against the coup. Sanogo also announced his intention to seek peace talks with the Tuareg insurgents. According to Mali's state television service, Sanogo also met French ambassador Christian Rouyer along with several other foreign dignitaries.
25 March.
The Agence France-Presse reported the streets of Bamako were calm but largely deserted due to fears of looting and a petrol (gasoline) shortage. Many businesses remained closed, with Sanogo calling for them to reopen on Tuesday, 27 March.
It was announced that ECOWAS heads of state were planning to hold an emergency meeting in Abidjan on the 27th, the day on which the junta had called for striking civil servants to return to work. A joint delegation from ECOWAS and the AU also began negotiations with the rebel soldiers to restore power to the elected government. Meanwhile, Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga, the detained foreign minister, and 13 other imprisoned officials announced their intention to begin a hunger strike.
The stranded Kenyan and Zimbabwean foreign ministers were evacuated from Mali to Nigeria.
26 March.
The Barack Obama administration in the U.S. formally suspended aid to Mali, stating that it would only resume when democracy was restored. A thousand-person protest also gathered in Bamako to urge a return to democracy, chanting "Down with Sanogo" and "Liberate the ORTM" (Office de Radiodiffusion-Télévision du Mali).
The Bamako-Sénou International Airport was "partially" reopened for civilian transport.
27 March.
Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara called on an ECOWAS meeting in Abidjan to send a "strong signal" to the mutinous soldiers that democracy must be restored; he later described Mali's return to democracy as "non-negotiable". Kadre Desire Ouedraogo, the head of the ECOWAS commission, described the coup as "a threat to the entire region". Hundreds of Malian protesters demonstrated at the meeting, calling for a return to civilian rule. Following the meeting, ECOWAS placed peacekeeping troops on standby, hinting at possible military intervention.
Businesses and schools reopened following a call by the CNRDR for them to do so.
A spokesperson for the French embassy confirmed that Ambassador Christian Rouyer had spoken with Touré by telephone, and that Touré had stated that he was safe.
The Tuareg rebellion dismissed calls by Sanogo for a cease-fire and continued its latest offensive.
28 March.
Amadou Toumani Touré said in an interview with French radio station RFI : "I am free and in my country... The most important thing for me is not my own position. What is important is democracy, institutions and Mali."
Several thousand Malians took to the streets in the capital to show their support for the junta and reject "foreign interference" as the Economic Community of West African States said it was putting regional troops on