STORY: Benin President Patrice Talon said on Sunday that the government and armed forces had thwarted a coup attempt by a group of soldiers and vowed to punish them.
"I would like to commend the sense of duty of our army and its leaders, who have remained republican and loyal to the homeland. With them, we stood firm, regained positions until we cleared the last pockets of resistance from the mutineers. This commitment and mobilization have enabled us to defeat these adventurers and avoid the worst for our country. This wrongdoing will not go unpunished."
The announcement came about 12 hours after gunfire first rang out in several neighborhoods of Cotonou, the West African nation's biggest city and commercial hub.
Soldiers had gone on state television saying they removed Talon from power to "give our country a new direction."
A government spokesperson said that 14 people had been arrested in connection with the coup attempt as of Sunday afternoon.
:: File
The unrest came as Benin prepares for a presidential election in April that is expected to end Talon's tenure...
And was the latest threat to democratic rule in the region.
In recent years, militaries have seized power in Benin's neighbors like Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali and Guinea, and just last month, Guinea-Bissau.
West Africa's regional bloc ECOWAS and the African Union condemned the coup attempt.
