Beninese authorities have remanded about 30 people, most of them soldiers, in prison over their alleged involvement in a foiled coup attempt earlier this month, legal sources said on Tuesday.
The suspects were brought before a special prosecutor at the Court for Economic Crimes and Terrorism in Cotonou on Monday and were placed in pre-trial detention the following day. They are being prosecuted on charges of treason, murder and endangering state security.
The attempted coup occurred on December 7, when mutinous soldiers appeared on national television announcing the overthrow of President Patrice Talon. The uprising was swiftly crushed by loyalist forces with support from the Nigerian Air Force and French special forces. Several people were reportedly killed during the clashes.
The alleged leader of the coup, Lieutenant-Colonel Pascal Tigri, along with other mutineers, remains at large.
Security was heavily deployed around the Cotonou court during the hearing, according to an AFP journalist.
In a related development, Chabi Yayi, son of former Beninese president and opposition leader Thomas Boni Yayi, was released on Monday after being questioned over the attempted coup. Judicial sources said he remains under investigation and has been granted freedom of movement but is expected to report again to police on Thursday. He is a member of the opposition party led by his father.
Authorities have also intensified actions against figures linked to opposition and dissent. On Monday, the Cotonou Court of Appeal upheld a two-year prison sentence for online activist Steve Amoussou, accused of operating a social media account critical of the government.
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Last Friday, former defence minister and prominent opposition figure Candide Azannai was arrested, though it remains unclear whether his detention is directly linked to the coup attempt, which he publicly condemned.
Benin has also issued an international arrest warrant for Pan-Africanist activist Kemi Seba over his alleged support for the failed coup. He is being prosecuted in absentia for advocating crimes against state security and inciting rebellion.
President Talon, who is due to leave office in April after completing the constitutionally permitted two terms, has faced criticism from opponents who accuse his administration of authoritarian tendencies, despite economic gains. The country has also grappled with jihadist violence in its northern regions in recent years.