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Burkina Faso Military Seizes Barracks of Coup Holdouts Burkina Faso Military Seizes Barracks of Coup Holdouts
(about 2 hours later)
OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso — The Burkina Faso military crushed the last remnants of a failed coup on Tuesday, overrunning the barracks of the elite unit that staged the coup 13 days ago. OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso — The Burkina Faso military crushed the last remnants of a failed coup on Tuesday, storming the barracks of the elite unit that staged the coup 13 days earlier.
The military announced late in the evening that it had shelled and then seized the Camp Naaba Koom barracks, near the presidential palace here in the capital. The action followed a tense standoff, with troops loyal to the country’s transitional government surrounding the camp, the palace and other key buildings in the capital. Holdouts from the elite unit, the Presidential Security Regiment, had refused to surrender, even after the leader of the coup, Gen. Gilbert Diendéré, called on Tuesday for them to lay down their weapons. The military announced late in the evening that it had shelled and then seized Camp Naaba Koom II, the unit’s headquarters near the presidential palace here in the capital, Ouagadougou.
Tanks and other armored vehicles took up positions outside the palace and the barracks, and soldiers were seen near the airport and the national radio and television stations. The airport was closed, sporadic gunfire was heard in the city, and the government told residents to stay away from the palace and the surrounding neighborhood, known as Ouaga 2000. The action followed a tense standoff, with troops loyal to the country’s transitional government having surrounded the camp, the palace and other key buildings here.
Though the coup leaders handed power back to the transitional government last week after a mediation effort by West African leaders, the government has not yet retaken full control of Ouagadougou. Holdouts from the unit, the Presidential Security Regiment, had refused to surrender, even after the leader of the coup, Gen. Gilbert Diendéré, called for them to lay down their weapons.
Referring to the coup regiment by its French initials, the government said Tuesday that it had taken steps “to guarantee its security, to pursue the process of disarming the former R.S.P., and to achieve the surrender of the die-hards entrenched in Camp Naaba Koom.” Throughout the day, tanks and armored pickup trucks took up positions outside the palace and the barracks. Soldiers, armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers, were stationed around the national radio and television stations and at the airport, which was closed.
Reuters reported late Tuesday, citing an army officer whom it did not name, that the troops entering the camp met little resistance. There was no immediate information concerning casualties. The government ordered residents to stay away from the neighborhood around the palace, known as Ouaga 2000.
The regiment is considered to be loyal to Blaise Compaoré, the former president, who was toppled by a mass uprising last October after 27 years in power. Mr. Compaoré is living in exile in Morocco, but his associates and supporters remain active; the coup followed efforts by the transitional government to exclude them from an election this fall. On Tuesday night, General Diendéré told Agence France-Presse in a telephone interview that he feared “many deaths and injuries” in the operation, but there was no official confirmation of any casualties. General Diendéré said he had left the base, but would not disclose his whereabouts.
Officers of the regiment seized the palace on the night of Sept. 16 and detained the interim president, Michel Kafando, and prime minister, Lt. Col. Isaac Zida. The two men have been released, and were formally reinstated last Wednesday after a diplomatic intervention by the presidents of Senegal and Benin, along with other leaders of the Economic Community of West African States. The transitional government announced the end of the coup in a statement.
Under the agreement brokered by the leaders, the R.S.P. was supposed to return to its barracks and disarm. General Diendéré publicly apologized to the nation for the coup and urged his followers to comply, but some troops in the regiment refused. “The coup elements of the former R.S.P. remained unbending in their will to define the Burkinabe people,” the transitional government said, using the French initials of the Presidential Security Regiment. “Using delaying tactics in the expectation of foreign reinforcements and in the hope of an eventually rallying of internal support, these coup elements, surrounded by a group of die-hards, have held the daily lives of millions of Burkinabe people. Faced with a situation that had become intolerable for our people, and determined to turn this dark page in our common history, our patriotic Defense and Security Forces carried out their responsibilities successfully.”
The government officially disbanded the regiment on Friday. The next day, the authorities moved to seize the assets of General Diendéré and 13 other people associated with Mr. Compaoré, including Djibril Bassolé, a former foreign minister who was arrested on Tuesday. The R.S.P. was created in 1995 by President Blaise Compaoré, who was toppled by a mass uprising last October after 27 years in power. Mr. Compaoré has been living in exile in Morocco — he was scheduled to travel to the Ivory Coast for medical treatment on Tuesday — but many of his associates and supporters remain active in political life.
General Diendéré told Reuters by telephone on Tuesday that he was away from the barracks in “a safe place,” but would not say where. The news agency said he was thought to have taken refuge in the Vatican’s diplomatic compound here. The coup began on the night of Sept. 16 when officers of the regiment stormed the presidential palace and held the interim president, Michel Kafando, and prime minister, Lt. Col. Isaac Zida, hostage, along with several cabinet members. The regiment announced that General Diendéré, a former chief of staff to Mr. Compaoré, had taken charge of the country.
But the revolt quickly began to fall apart. Protests erupted in the country’s major cities: Ouagadougou, Bobo-Dioulasso, Koudougou and Ouahigouya. Unions went on strike, shutting down the economy. The United Nations condemned the takeover, and the African Union suspended Burkina Faso’s membership.
Mr. Kafando — along with Colonel Zida, who had helped lead the uprising last October — was formally reinstated last Wednesday after a mediation effort by the presidents of Senegal and Benin, along with other leaders of the Economic Community of West African States.
Under the agreement brokered by the leaders, the R.S.P. was supposed to return to its barracks and disarm. General Diendéré publicly apologized for the coup and urged his followers to comply, but many in the 1,300-member regiment refused.
On Monday, the government declared the situation to be at an impasse and accused the regiment of soliciting help from “jihadists.”
Western governments worry that Islamist extremist groups, including Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, might infiltrate Burkina Faso from its northern neighbors, Mali and Niger.
In a radio interview on Tuesday, General Diendéré said, “I categorically deny this accusation.” He said that he accepted the decision to disband the R.S.P. and that he had tried to defuse the standoff, which he blamed on “rogue elements.” He noted that key officers in the regiment — including Commandant Abdoul Aziz Korogo, the unit’s interim commanding officer, and Capt. Abdoulaye Dao, its spokesman — had agreed to withdraw from the camp, along with scores of other members.