Two Days In Military Detention, Mali's President And Prime Minister Resign

JAKARTA - Mali's interim president and Prime Minister resigned on Wednesday, May 26, local time, after two days of military arrests.

President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane were arrested after a cabinet reshuffle, causing two military officers to lose their posts.

The intervention, led by Vice President Assimi Goita, is considered to have jeopardized Mali's transition back to democracy after a coup in August of the year toppled former President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.

Goita, a military colonel, was involved in last year's coup. He promised that the election planned for next year would go smoothly.

"The president and his prime minister have resigned. Negotiations are underway for their release and the formation of a new government," Baba Cisse, a Goita aide, told Reuters on Thursday, May 27.

The United Nations Security Council issued a joint international condemnation, considering the political crisis in Bamako could affect regional security.

The U.N. Security Council met in private to hold a meeting yesterday, issuing a statement calling for the safe, immediate and unconditional release of all detained officials. The board insists that violent changes in transitional leadership, including through forced resignations, are unacceptable.

Goita defended his actions, saying the president and prime minister had violated the transition charter by not consulting him about the new cabinet.

In addition, Goita also accused the government of mishandling social tensions in Mali, including strikes by major unions.

France, the European Union, and the United States have threatened to impose targeted sanctions over what French President Emmanuel Macron called a coup d'etat.

Last Wednesday, the United States State Department suspended aid to Mali's security and defense forces, calling for the release of the detainees and the resumption of the civilian-led transition.

Meanwhile, Cisse told reporters that the two leaders would be freed but not immediately, due to security considerations.

Their resignation coincided with a visit by a delegation of the Economic Community of West African Countries (ECOWAS) to pressure the military to withdraw.

The delegation, led by former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, has also raised the possibility of sanctions against the officer responsible for the takeover, according to a military official present at this week's meeting in Bamako.

It is unclear whether ECOWAS will be satisfied with the president and prime minister's replacement, or whether it will insist that Ndaw and Ouane take re-office. ECOWAS and other powers want a civilian-led transition to democracy to continue.

ECOWAS imposed sanctions, including border closures, in Mali after a coup in August before revoking them when Goita's junta approved an 18-month civilian-led transition.

Neighboring Mali and international powers fear the crisis could further shake the country, which has been used by groups linked to al-Qaida and ISIS, as a launching pad for attacks across the region.

President Bah Ndaw, Prime Minister Moctar Ouane, and Defense Minister Souleymane Doucoure were all taken to a military base in Kati outside the capital Bamako, hours after two military members lost their positions in a government reshuffle.