The small west African nation was rocked by a failed putsch Sunday, which saw Nigeria, France and Ivory Coast mobilise in support of the civilian government.
"There are currently around 200 soldiers present, who came to lend a hand at the end of the day to the Beninese defence and security forces as part of the sweep and clean-up operation," Olushegun Adjadi Bakari told reporters at a press conference in the Nigerian capital.
According to an Ivorian security source, fifty troops were sent by Abidjan as part of the deployment, which regional bloc ECOWAS has said will also include soldiers from Ghana and Sierra Leone.
Nigeria said its soldiers had reached Benin on Sunday. ECOWAS has not made public the total number of troops expected.
The head of Benin's republican guard told AFP that French special forces also provided support.
Bakari said that by the time the Beninese forces called for help, the coup "was already a failure".
"They started the coup around 3 a.m. They attacked the president's house around 3 a.m. And our national defence force, they blocked them," Bakari told reporters on the sidelines of an ongoing ECOWAS summit in Abuja.
"When we started discussions for the intervention of Nigeria and the others, under ECOWAS protocol, our military already pushed them back," he said. "It was already a failure, the coup."
The Nigerian air force was called in to dislodge alleged putschists holed up in a military camp in a heavily populated area of Cotonou, with Beninese commanders worried that a gunfight could leave civilian casualties.
"President Talon requested aerial support from Nigeria to ensure we can have a surgical impact, destroy the armoured vehicles they have in this military barracks and ensure they cannot get out to take over the airport, et cetera," Bakari said.
He added how long the ECOWAS troops will stay will be decided "in the coming days".
"Their presence is in tight collaboration with Beninese defence and security forces," he said.
Benin police arrest former defence minister: sources
Cotonou, Benin (AFP) Dec 12, 2025 -
Benin's former defence minister and prominent opposition figure, Candide Azannai, was arrested Friday in the economic capital Cotonou, a police source and one of his associates told AFP.
It is unclear whether his detention is linked to Sunday's foiled coup attempt by the army. Authorities have yet to release an official list of suspects.
Azannai condemned the coup attempt in a Facebook statement on Wednesday but also denounced attempts to "exploit the criminal events... for the purpose of seizing power through manipulation and intimidation of dissenting voices and critical political opinions".
The police source, who requested anonymity, gave no details on the reasons behind the arrest, nor the location where Azannai is being held.
A close associate confirmed the arrest, adding they had "no information" about the motive.
A key political figure and outspoken critic of President Patrice Talon, Azannai helped bring him to power in 2016 before breaking with him and joining the opposition.
Talon has been praised for Benin's economic development, but critics say he has become increasingly autocratic.
He is due to reach the end of his second term in 2026, the maximum allowed by the constitution.
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