Mauritania announces foiling a coupe attempt

Mauritania's minister of the interior, Ghali Weld Sharif Ahmad, announced yesterday that the authorities in Mauritania "foiled a coupe attempt" and confiscated weapons that were about to be used in carrying out a "criminal plan."

Ahmad said that the "Mauritanian security departments and the intelligence succeeded in foiling a vast scheme to destabilize the country; based on destroying the presidency, the army chief headquarters, the telecommunications centers, the airport and the electricity stations with the aim to seize the authority."