LAGOS AUGUST 19^TH (NEWSRANGERS)-Mali President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and top government officials were detained on Tuesday in a mutiny by soldiers in the capital Bamako.

Keita’s detention at his residence in southwestern Bamako followed hours of uncertainty after soldiers mutinied in the morning at the Kati military base outside Bamako and rounded up a number of senior civilian officials and military officers.

Prime Minister Boubou Cisse, who had earlier appealed for dialogue and urged mutineers to stand down, is also said to be in detention.

It was not immediately clear who was leading the mutineers, who would govern in Keita’s absence or what the mutineers’ motivations were.

A military spokesman said he had no information.

 Rumors earlier in the day that the mutineers had detained Keita prompted hundreds of anti-government protesters to pour into a central square to celebrate and chant that it was time for him to resign.

The protesters have blamed Keita for corruption and worsening security in the north and center of the West African country where Islamist militants are active.

Today’s events plunged Mali, a country already facing a jihadist insurgency and mass protests, deeper into crisis.

Reuters