Mauritania’s deposed President Abdallahi freed
Güncelleme Tarihi:
AP
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Aralık 22, 2008 00:00
NOUAKCHOTT - The deposed president of the desert-encircled African nation of Mauritania was set free yesterday after 4 1/2 months under house arrest.
But those in his inner circle said Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi is still under surveillance. They pointed to the security forces posted inside his home in the country's capital and the soldiers still patrolling his native village.
Kaber Ould Hamoudi, the president's chief of staff, said soldiers woke Abdallahi's family shortly after 3 a.m., banging violently on the door of his home in Lemden, a village 150 miles (240 kilometers) from the capital where the military had placed him under 24-hour surveillance.
The security forces demanded his staff wake the 70-year-old president, who was not told where he was going and was not allowed to be accompanied by his family. They took him to his home in the capital - a three-hour drive away - and dropped him off, telling him he had been set free, said Hamoudi.
"But the three guards that were watching him in Lemden followed him to Nouakchott and are now posted in his home in Nouakchott," said Hamoudi who spoke by telephone from Lemden.
Aid cancelation
Abdallahi refused to stay at his house in the capital and immediately made arrangements to be driven back to Lemden. The most visible change in his status is that he appears to be allowed to move freely and there are no security forces inside his village home, even though about 15 soldiers are still posted in the small town.
The U.S. and France both canceled aid to Mauritania following the country's Aug. 6 coup, calling on the military junta to release the deposed president and restore the constitution.
For the first four months, the ruling junta kept Abdallahi under house arrest in a villa in the capital. They then transferred him to his village where he was allowed to leave his house, but not the town. Three soldiers followed him at all times, said the president's daughter Amal Mint Abdallahi, who is also a spokeswoman for his administration.
Bowing to international pressure, the junta had announced they planned to release Abdallahi by Dec. 24.
"They took him by force. They didn't allow him to take his things or for his family to come along," said Amal Mint Abdallahi. "Is this really freedom?
Kaber Ould Hamoudi, the president's chief of staff, said soldiers woke Abdallahi's family shortly after 3 a.m., banging violently on the door of his home in Lemden, a village 150 miles (240 kilometers) from the capital where the military had placed him under 24-hour surveillance.
The security forces demanded his staff wake the 70-year-old president, who was not told where he was going and was not allowed to be accompanied by his family. They took him to his home in the capital - a three-hour drive away - and dropped him off, telling him he had been set free, said Hamoudi.
"But the three guards that were watching him in Lemden followed him to Nouakchott and are now posted in his home in Nouakchott," said Hamoudi who spoke by telephone from Lemden.
Aid cancelation
Abdallahi refused to stay at his house in the capital and immediately made arrangements to be driven back to Lemden. The most visible change in his status is that he appears to be allowed to move freely and there are no security forces inside his village home, even though about 15 soldiers are still posted in the small town.
The U.S. and France both canceled aid to Mauritania following the country's Aug. 6 coup, calling on the military junta to release the deposed president and restore the constitution.
For the first four months, the ruling junta kept Abdallahi under house arrest in a villa in the capital. They then transferred him to his village where he was allowed to leave his house, but not the town. Three soldiers followed him at all times, said the president's daughter Amal Mint Abdallahi, who is also a spokeswoman for his administration.
Bowing to international pressure, the junta had announced they planned to release Abdallahi by Dec. 24.
"They took him by force. They didn't allow him to take his things or for his family to come along," said Amal Mint Abdallahi. "Is this really freedom?