Gunfire woke Porto-Novo before sunrise on Sunday. Armed men in uniform tried to force their way into President Patrice Talon’s residence. They failed.
Minutes later, another unit burst into Benin’s state television headquarters in Cotonou. At around 6 a.m., viewers watching morning prayers suddenly saw Lieutenant-Colonel Pascal Tigri, beret straight, face grim, reading from a prepared statement.
“Patrice Talon is dismissed. The Constitution is suspended. All institutions are dissolved,” he declared. The short video looped for nearly two hours while confused citizens reached for their phones.
The plotters called themselves the Military Committee for Refoundation. They promised to fix corruption, northern insecurity, and what they called Talon’s “dictatorial drift.” Yet almost nobody in the army followed them.
By 8:15 a.m., elite Republican Guard units surrounded the television building. The broadcast cut to static. A government spokesman soon appeared: “The president is safe. The mutineers are contained.”
Sources close to the palace say Talon and his wife were whisked away in an armored convoy as the first shots rang out. He reportedly spent the morning in a secure military camp on the outskirts of Cotonou, calmly drinking coffee while his generals reported every move.
Lieutenant-Colonel Tigri, once respected for anti-jihadist operations up north, now faces arrest along with roughly twenty officers. Insiders whisper the group felt cornered by an impending military reshuffle and decided to gamble everything.
Streets stayed quiet. No cheering crowds, no burning tires – just long fuel queues born of rumor.
As Sunday afternoon settled, the only visible change was heavier patrols around government buildings. Talon has not spoken publicly yet, but those close to him say he is already planning how to turn this dramatic failure into political capital before the 2026 election he swears he will not contest.
For now, Benin exhales. The palace lights are back on, the borders remain open, and a would-be junta lasts less time than Sunday brunch.
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