Does the coup come as a surprise?
Most Mauritanians believe that the US has double standards when it comes to dealing with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This is the fourth attempted coup d’etat within two years. The most serious one took place in June 2003, when more than 150 people died and a lot of military equipment was destroyed in the battles. There were two others in 2004, one in August and the second one in September. They have just finished trying the officers of those two coup attempts. Mauritania is only the third Arab country to recognise Israel – Egypt and Jordan being the other two. Who is behind these coup attempts? They are led by the military establishment but their support comes from Islamist movements within the popular opposition. Earlier this year the opposition made it clear they would support any toppling of President Taya which led to democratic elections. But if this coup succeeds, the leaders will find it difficult to find legitimacy, as African countries have agreed that they will not reco
