President Andry Rajoelina had been scheduled to address the island nation, which is located off Africa's southeastern coast, when his office reported a group of soldiers had joined protesters in a threat to seize state television.
While Rajoelina's whereabouts are unknown, his office said he would be making a speech Monday night. The president has dual French-Malagasy citizenship and was reported to have left the country in a French military aircraft, according to his staff.
Rajoelina, 51, said in a statement Sunday that he wanted to "inform the nation and the international community that an attempt to seize power illegally and by force" had been "initiated."
On Saturday, Rajoelina's new prime minister Gen. Ruphin Fortunat Zafisambo said the government was "fully ready to listen and engage in dialogue with all factions -- youth, unions or the military."
Monday's coup attempt follows two weeks of protests, mostly led by young adults, called Gen Z Mada over alleged corruption, power and water shortages, as well as inflation and unemployment in Madagascar's capital of Antananarivo.
At least 22 people have been killed and 100 injured since the start of the unrest in September, according to the United Nations. Since Madagascar declared its independence from France in 1960, it has seen several leaders toppled in coups.
"As long as Rajoelina remains in power, we will continue the struggle," Gen Z Mada wrote in a statement earlier this month. Madagascar's president responded to the unrest by appointing Zafisambo as prime minister in an effort to stop the anti-government protests.
Madagascar installs armed forces chief chosen by mutinying unit
Antananarivo (AFP) Oct 12, 2025 - Madagascar's armed forces minister on Sunday recognised as new head of the army an officer chosen by a military contingent siding with protesters demanding the departure of President Andry Rajoelina.
General Demosthene Pikulas was installed as chief of the Army Staff during a ceremony at the army headquarters attended by armed forces minister, Manantsoa Deramasinjaka Rakotoarivelo.
"I give him my blessing," the minister said of Pikulas, who was chosen by the mutinying CAPSAT unit that on Saturday joined the youth-led demonstrators.
Earlier in the day, Rajoelina denounced an "attempt to seize power illegally".
Pikulas admitted to journalists after the ceremony that events in Madagascar over the past few days had been "unpredictable".
"So the army has a responsibility to restore calm and peace throughout Madagascar," he said.
When asked if he called for Rajoelina to resign, the new chief of Army Staff said he refused to "discuss politics within a military facility".
Rajoelina last week appointed Rakotoarivelo as minister of armed forces after he sacked his entire cabinet in a bid to quell the near-daily protests that have rocked the Indian ocean island since September 25.
CAPSAT Colonel Michael Randrianirina said his unit's decision to join the protesters did not amount to a coup.
"We answered the people's calls, but it wasn't a coup d'etat," he told reporters.
"The situation -- I can call it chaos, but it's not chaos caused by the army, it's chaos caused by the leader," he said.
Madagascar army unit claims control, president says power-grab underway
Antananarivo (AFP) Oct 12, 2025 -
A mutinied army unit declared Sunday that it was taking control of all Madagascar military forces as President Andry Rajoelina said an "attempt to seize power illegally" was under way.
The CAPSAT contingent of administrative and technical officers joined thousands of protesters in the city centre on Saturday in a major shift in a more than two-week anti-government protest movement.
The unit had earlier declared that it would "refuse orders to shoot" and criticised the gendarmerie, who have been accused of using heavy-handed tactics against protesters, causing several deaths.
"From now on, all orders of the Malagasy army -- whether land, air or the navy -- will originate from CAPSAT headquarters," the CAPSAT officers claimed in a video statement.
There was no immediate response from other units or the military command.
Soldiers from the unit clashed with gendarmes outside a barracks on Saturday and rode into the city on army vehicles to join the demonstrators, who welcomed them with jubilation and calls for Rajoelina to resign.
The president released a statement Sunday saying "an attempt to seize power illegally and by force, contrary to the Constitution and to democratic principles, is currently under way."
"Dialogue is the only way forward and the only solution to the crisis currently facing the country," he said, calling for "unity".
- 'Faults'-
Officers of the gendarmerie said in a video statement Sunday that they recognised "faults and excesses during our interventions," calling for "fraternity" between the army and the gendarmes.
"We are here to protect, not to terrorise," they said, adding that "from now on, all orders will come solely" from the gendarmerie's headquarters.
Saturday's demonstration in the capital Antananarivo was one of the biggest since the protest movement erupted on September 25, sparked by anger over power and water shortages.
The government on Sunday night ensured that Rajoelina remained "in the country" and was managing national affairs, while the newly appointed prime minister said the government was "standing strong" and "ready to collaborate and listen".
The CAPSAT contingent is based in the Soanierana district on the outskirts of Antananarivo.
The Soanierana military base in 2009 led a mutiny during a popular uprising that brought Rajoelina to power.
The United Nations has said that at least 22 people were killed in the first days of the protests that started on September 25, some killed by security forces and others in violence sparked by criminal gangs and looters in the wake of the demonstrations.
Rajoelina has disputed the toll, saying last week there were "12 confirmed deaths and all of these individuals were looters and vandals".
According to local media, the emergency services reported another two dead and 26 injured on Saturday. The CAPSAT unit said a soldier was also shot by gendarmes and died.
Madagascar soldiers join protesters as thousands gather in Antananarivo
Antananarivo (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 -
A military contingent joined thousands of anti-government demonstrators in Madagascar on Saturday, calling on security forces to "refuse orders to shoot" and condemning police action to quell over two weeks of youth-led protests that have rocked the Indian Ocean island.
The newly appointed premier on Saturday night said the government was "standing strong" and "ready to collaborate and listen to all forces -- the youth, trade unions, and the military".
"Madagascar will not be able to withstand any further crises if this division among the people continues," Prime Minister Ruphin Fortunat Dimbisoa Zafisambo said in a short video speech.
The presidency meanwhile sent out a statement ensuring that President Andry Rajoelina "remains in the country" and "continues to manage national affairs".
Saturday's demonstration in the capital Antananarivo was one of the biggest since the protest movement erupted on September 25, sparked by anger over power and water shortages.
Police used stun grenades and tear gas to try to disperse the large crowds of several thousand people, but some left as soldiers from the CAPSAT contingent of administrative and technical officers rode into the city on army vehicles to join the demonstrators.
They were welcomed with cheers from protesters who called out "Thank you!" to the uniformed troops, some waving Madagascar flags.
The departure of the police and other security forces opened the way for the crowds to reach the symbolic Place du 13 Mai in front of Antananarivo's city hall.
CAPSAT Colonel Michael Randrianirina told AFP at the site that police had shot at the soldiers as they passed barracks, hitting one and a journalist. "The journalist was hit in the buttock, while the soldier died," he said.
"For all those who sent the gendarmes here, starting with the head of gendarmerie, the prime minister, the president... they must leave power," he told AFP.
According to local media, the emergency services reported two dead and 26 injured on Saturday.
AFP reporters heard shots being fired during the demonstration, and shots and explosions could still be heard in Antananarivo's centre while protesters continued celebrating on the square as night fell.
- 'Refuse to shoot' -
Before leaving their camp at Soanierana on the outskirts of the city, the soldiers called on the army and security units not to shoot protesters.
"Let us join forces, military, gendarmes and police, and refuse to be paid to shoot our friends, our brothers and our sisters," Randrianirina said, surrounded by soldiers in uniform, in a video shared on social media.
The military base in Soanierana in 2009 led a mutiny in a popular uprising that brought Rajoelina to power.
It was unclear how many soldiers joined their call Saturday.
The Gen Z movement leading the near-daily protests on Saturday night called for Rajoelina to resign, in a list of written demands that also included the "initiation of a democratic national dialogue and "universal access to essential services" from water to employment.
"We firmly reaffirm that we do not seek a coup d'Etat nor the seizure of power by force," the statement said, thanking the CAPSAT contingent for a "powerful and historic gesture".
"We don't have any weapons. We try to protect ourselves with stones from the tear gas they throw at us. And now, we really feel a sense of pride," said Lucie, a 24-year-old protester, who gave only her first name.
With frequent power and water cuts, life in Madagascar was "hell", said one young man on condition of anonymity.
"And once you ask for what you want, they give you tear gas. There is no freedom," he told AFP.
- Violent crackdown -
The United Nations has said that at least 22 people were killed in the first days of the protests that started on September 25.
Rajoelina has disputed the toll, saying last week there were "12 confirmed deaths and all of these individuals were looters and vandals".
Madagascar is one of the world's poorest countries and has undergone frequent popular uprisings since its independence from France in 1960.
Faced with near daily protests since September 25, Rajoelina fired his government on September 30, appointing an army general as prime minister, but the move failed to quell the uprising.
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