Soldiers in Ivory Coast’s second-largest city, Bouake, opened fire on Saturday, trapping the country’s minister of defense inside a local official’s house shortly after a deal to end two-day mutiny appeared to have been agreed, a Reuters witness said.
The dramatic turn of events came just an hour and a half after Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara announced he had agreed to the soldiers’ demands for bonus payments and improved living standards.
In addition to Ivory Coast Minister of Defense Alain-Richard Donwahi, the deputy commander of the country’s elite Republican Guard, the mayor of Bouake and other local officials as well as journalists were trapped inside the sub-prefect’s residence.
Photo: AFP
A crowd of angry soldiers massed outside the house, and the reporter said he heard some shouting that they wanted their bonuses paid immediately, not next week.
The uprising began early on Friday when the soldiers, mainly former rebel fighters, seized Bouake.
Over the next two days, soldiers at military camps in cities and towns across the country, including the commercial capital Abidjan, joined the mutiny.
Speaking to his government ministers and reporters before the incident at the sub-prefect’s house, Ouattara said he had agreed to some of the soldiers’ grievances but chastised them for sparking the unrest.
“I would like to say that this manner of making demands is not appropriate. It tarnishes the image of our country after all our efforts to revive the economy,” Ouattara said before calling on the soldiers to return to barracks.
A member of the uprising close to the negotiations had earlier said the mutineers were satisfied with the deal and were preparing to leave the streets.
“It’s over,” Sergeant Mamadou Kone told reporters. “Some of our soldiers will remain in place to manage the security of shops and banks, but the majority of soldiers will return to barracks beginning tonight.”
The revolt comes two years after hundreds of soldiers barricaded roads in cities across Ivory Coast demanding back pay in a near identical uprising.
The government the also agreed a deal, that included amnesty from punishment and a financial settlement for the mutineers.
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