The crisis began in the early hours when a group of mutineers in military uniforms launched an assault on the presidential residence.
Nigeria has withdrawn the fighter aircraft earlier deployed to the Benin Republic after authorities concluded that the security situation in the neighbouring country had stabilised, following a dramatic but short-lived coup attempt on Sunday.
According to reports, the aircraft, deployed from Lagos for aerial surveillance and regional monitoring, were instructed to return to base on Sunday afternoon after updated intelligence confirmed that loyalist forces in Benin had re-established control and that there was no immediate threat to Nigeria’s territorial security.
Security analyst Zagazola Makama, on his X handle on Sunday, revealed that the coup attempt against President Patrice Talon was decisively foiled, with loyalist elements regaining full command of Cotonou before nightfall.
The crisis began in the early hours when a group of mutineers in military uniforms launched an assault on the presidential residence.
Their attack was repelled, forcing the plotters to shift tactics. In a desperate move, they stormed the Office de Radiodiffusion et Télévision du Bénin (ORTB), seized the national broadcast hub, and attempted to take control of the state signal.
Meanwhile, as panic rippled through the capital, Benin’s security architecture responded swiftly.
Units of the National Guard and loyal troops mobilised, surrounding the ORTB headquarters and cutting off all exits as they moved to isolate the rebels.
By late Sunday, the government had secured major installations and restored order across the city.
“The situation is under control. The National Guard has everything surrounded,” a senior security official stated on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the ongoing operation.
However, a local media, including 24 Hours in Benin, reported that the mutineers remained barricaded inside the national television compound as of Sunday evening.
Authorities confirmed that negotiations were underway to persuade the holdouts to surrender peacefully.
Earlier, SaharaReporters reported that Benin’s Interior Minister, Alassane Seidou, announced that the country’s armed forces have successfully thwarted an attempted coup.
The statement followed reports that soldiers briefly appeared on state television, declaring the removal of President Patrice Talon, closing the nation’s borders, and suspending political parties.
The presidency of Benin also confirmed that President Talon was safe and that the army was gradually regaining control following an attempted coup.
The officers, identifying themselves as the Military Committee for Refoundation, were reportedly led by Lieutenant Colonel Pascal Tigri.
According to reports from Beninese media outlet TchadOne, the group attacked President Talon’s residence in the Le Guézo neighborhood and took control of the national television station, where Tigri declared himself “chairman of the military re-establishment committee.”
However, the president’s office, as reported by AFP, stated that President Talon remained unharmed and that loyalist forces were working to restore order across the capital.
“This is a small group of people who only control the television,” AFP quoted the presidency as saying.
“The regular army is regaining control. The city and the country are completely secure.”
Earlier on Sunday, Lieutenant Tigri spoke to the National Television to announce the military coup.
West Africa has been gripped by a troubling wave of coups in recent years, underscoring the fragility of democratic institutions across the region.