Iran Press/Africa: Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita announced early on Wednesday that he is resigning from his post saying that he does not wish blood to be shed following a military mutiny that plunged the country into a political crisis.
"Today, certain parts of the military have decided that intervention was necessary. Do I really have a choice? Because I do not wish blood to be shed," Keita said in a brief statement broadcast on national television.
President Keita, who held the post since 2013, also announced the dissolution of the country’s unicameral parliament and the resignation of the cabinet of ministers.
"I inform you about my decision to resign, to give up my duty from now on," he said in a broadcast of the Radio and Television of Mali.
A mutiny broke out at an army base in Kati, outside capital city Bamako, on Tuesday morning. The rebels arrested a number of ministers, including foreign and finance ministers, and the parliament speaker.
According to the local websites, the rebels are led by Colonel Sadio Camara, a former director of a military school at the Kati military base.
Malian General Staff is also controlled by the rebels, with a number of senior officers being arrested.
Later in the day, the
media reported that the country’s president and the prime minister were also arrested and taken to the Kati military base.
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