Widespread public discontent over the Mauritanian president’s long-standing friendship with Israel, heightened in the aftermath of the US-led war on Iraq, have resulted in a violent attempt to overthrow the regime of President Maaouiya Ould Taya.
Explosions and gunshots rocked Mauritania's capital Nouackchott Monday morning, June 9, after officials have earlier announced that the attempted military coup in the northwest African nation has been foiled with the surrender and arrest of the rebels, reported Reuters.
The uprising erupted early Sunday, when dissident soldiers claimed to have seized the presidential palace, as well as other nearby governmental buildings. The whereabouts of the president remain unknown, while Army Chief of Staff Mohammed Lamine Ould N'Deyane was reportedly killed.
The overthrow attempt follows the escalation of domestic tensions between pro-Israeli President Taya, who himself came to power in a bloodless military coup in 1984, and his Islamist opponents.
The US-led war on Iraq threw the predominantly Muslim country, home to 2.5 million, into political unrest. In May, the pro-Western government has cracked down on Islamic activists for shows of support for Iraq.
Having established full diplomatic relations with Israel in 1999, Mauritania is one of only three Arab League members to maintain close ties with the Jewish state. The Israeli embassy was not shut down after the outbreak of the Palestinian uprising in September 2000.
Since the normalization of ties, economic cooperation between the two nations has been extensive, particularly in the field of agriculture. Cooperation includes Israeli assistance to the establishment of a Cancer treatment hospital in Nouackchott, as well as technical and agricultural training for Mauritanians in Israel.
According to diplomatic sources, Israelis also provide covert assistance to Mauritania in the area of security. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
