Malian military which overthrew the democratcially elected President and Prime Minister now in dilemma has hurreidly pledged to form a transitional government.
The military junta reportedly led by a 25-year-old Sadio Camara and Malick Diaw promised to conduct the country’s elections amidst AU, EU and UN condemnations.
“Today, certain parts of the military have decided that intervention was necessary. Do I really have a choice? Because I do not wish blood to be shed,” Mr Keita said in a brief statement as quoted by Al Jazeera.
The political unrest reached a climax on Tuesday when President Keita and the Prime Minister, Boubou Cissé, were seized by mutinous soldiers.
Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita later resigned and dissolved the parliament, hours after he and the Prime Minister were arrested by mutinous soldiers in a suspected coup declared “I want no blood to be spilled to keep in power.”
Already, the West Africa bloc ECOWAS on Tuesday condemned a military putsch in Mali and pledged a range of retaliatory actions, including financial sanctions.
In a statement, the Economic Community for West African States Wednesday announced closure of land and air borders to Mali including financial aids, and pledged to demand sanctions against “all the putschists and their partners and collaborators.”
Despite intervention by regional heads led by Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari and his predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, Mali’s history of a military takeovers has played again as all mediation failed to resolve the crisis-torn nation.
For months, Mali has been mired in a political crisis marked by large anti-government rallies and failed mediation attempts by regional leaders.
