Coup attempt leader killed
2003-06-10 13:52
Nouakchott - The leader of a coup attempt in northwest African Mauritania was killed during two days of clashes between government forces and insurgents, the Arab satellite channel al-Jazeera reported Tuesday.
President Maaouya Ould Taya announced on Monday that he had quelled the coup attempt mounted by an armoured army unit on Sunday.
A government source earlier said that former colonel Jedai Salid Ould Hanana masterminded the insurgency. He was ousted from the army last year for supporting former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's Baath party, and is thought to have opposed Ould Taya's pro-western and pro-Israeli policies.
The circumstances of Ould Hanana's alleged demise were not reported. Dozens of insurgents were reported detained.
Hospital sources earlier said that many people had been killed or injured, including civilians. Some estimates put the number at several dozen, but no official figures were available. - Sapa-DPA
- SAPA