As the deadline expired, the ex-spy chief Diendere held a press conference, saying he was still in charge and that he was awaiting the outcome of a ECOWAS summit in Abuja, Nigeria, where African leaders were discussing developments in Burkina Faso. Coup leader Gen. Gilbert Diendere did not attend the event.
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Members of the presidential guard unit agreed to leave their positions in the capital, remain in their barracks and said they would allow an inventory of their weapons.
Mogho Naba, the King of Burkina Faso’s leading Mossi tribe, received the deal on Wednesday, September 23, in front of the media.
Faced with opposition from the rank and file military, popular unrest in the capital and firm opposition from regional leaders, coup leader Diendere said Tuesday that he would step down as requested by the regional bloc.
Kafando’s interim government has set October 11 for presidential and legislative elections, which would be the first in the African nation since Compaore was forced out of power.
The interim president overthrown in a coup last week in Burkina Faso says he’s now back in power.
Francois Hollande, the French president, has condemned the coup and called for the immediate release of those arrested.
Soldiers from all over the West African nation arrived in Ouagadougou, the capital, in a show of force to persuade the troops backing the coup to lay down their arms.
Burkina Faso’s Transition President Michel Kafando said on Wednesday in a message broadcast on radio and television that the “transition was back”.
Karim Sama, a founding member of the pro-democracy group, Balai Citoyen, or Citizen’s Broom, said that activists opposed any amnesty for the soldiers who carried out the coup and wanted the presidential guard to be disbanded.
Diendere had been an aide to Compaore and the head of the presidential guard under hm.
Diendere is the ex-spymaster of Burkina Faso’s former ruler, Blaise Compaore, who was pushed out of office by street protests after 27 years in power.
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The Obama administration said in its statement Thursday that it is “deeply disappointed” in the “self-interested actions of a few” threatening the opportunity for the people of Burkina Faso to hold elections and build a new future for their country.
