Madagascar's Army Has Announced It Has Seized Power In The Country

The president fled the country amid mass protests.

In Madagascar, the military has announced that state power in the country has been taken over by a military council made up of representatives of the army, gendarmerie and national police. It came 24 hours after it was reported that Madagascar's President Andry Rajoelina had fled abroad. "We have taken power into our own hands," Colonel Michael Randrianirina told national radio on Tuesday, October 14.

The constitution has been suspended, and all state institutions except Madagascar's lower house of parliament (the National Assembly) have been dissolved. A few minutes before the announcement of the transition of power into the hands of the military, deputies voted to remove Rajoelina from the post of the country's president.

The military council also includes members of the elite CAPSAT unit, with the help of which Andry Rajoelina came to power as a result of the coup d'état in 2009.

The day before it became known that Rajoelina following mass protests left the country on October 12 on a French military plane. As RFI radio notes, this was coordinated with French President Emmanuel Macron.

The opposition leader in Madagascar's parliament, Sitena Randrianasoloniayko, confirmed that the president had fled abroad. "We called the president's administration and they confirmed that he has left the country," the opposition leader told Reuters. He said the head of state decided to flee the country after army units defected to the protesters.

Andri Rajoelina himself said in an address to the nation, which was broadcast on Facebook on the evening of October 13, that he refused to resign. At the same time, he confirmed that he had left the country and attributed the decision to a desire to protect his life. Where exactly he is, Rajoelina did not inform. The opposition is now collecting signatures from MPs to initiate impeachment proceedings against the head of state.

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