The 1978 Mauritanian coup d'état was a bloodless military coup in Mauritania which took place on 10 July 1978.[1][2] The coup, led by the Army Chief of Staff, Colonel Mustafa Ould Salek, who commanded a group of junior officers, overthrew President Moktar Ould Daddah, who ruled the country since independence from France in 1960. The main motive for the coup was Daddah's ill-fated participation in the Western Sahara War (from 1975 onwards) and the resulting ruin of the economy of Mauritania.[3] Following the coup, Salek had assumed the presidency of a newly-formed military junta, the 20-member Military Committee for National Recovery (CMRN).[1][4]
Reports from the capital Nouakchott said no shooting had been heard in the city, and no casualties had been announced.[1]
After a period of imprisonment, Ould Daddah was allowed to go into exile in France in August 1979, and was allowed to return to Mauritania on 17 July 2001.[5]
References
- ^ a b c "Military Takes Over in Mauritania With a Reportedly Bloodless Coup". The New York Times. 11 July 1978. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
- ^ "MAURITANIA REGIME HELD PRO‐WESTERN". The New York Times. 12 July 1978. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
- ^ Robert E. Handloff. "Mauritania: Government". Mauritania: A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1988. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ "موقع" موريتانيد"". Archived from the original on 20 December 2012. Retrieved 19 December 2012.
- ^ "Ousted Mauritanian president returns home". BBC. 18 July 2001. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
