Politics
Madagascar’s military takes power, fleeing president impeached
An army commander who led a mutiny in Madagascar said on Tuesday the military had taken power after President Andry Rajoelina was impeached by lawmakers and forced to flee the country following weeks of youth-led protests.
Rajoelina had refused to step down despite escalating Gen Z demonstrations demanding his resignation and widespread defections in the army.
“We have taken the power,” Colonel Michael Randrianirina declared on national radio and said that the military was dissolving all institutions except the lower house of parliament or the National Assembly.
Randrianirina later told reporters a committee led by the military would rule the country for a period of up to two years alongside a transitional government before organising new elections.
“The following institutions are suspended: the Senate, the High Constitutional Court, the Independent National Electoral Commission, the High Court of Justice, and the High Council for the Defence of Human Rights and the Rule of Law,” a statement from the country’s military leaders said.
In a day of turmoil for the nation off southern Africa’s coast, the 51-year-old leader, whose whereabouts are unknown, earlier sought to dissolve the lower house by decree.
But lawmakers went ahead with a vote to impeach him, leaving the country in a constitutional deadlock which the military seized upon to declare they were taking charge.
Rajoelina, who himself came to power in a coup in 2009, condemned the power grab by the military in a statement.
Military suspends institutions
Randrianirina, a commander in the elite CAPSAT army unit that played a key role in Rajoelina’s 2009 coup, broke ranks with him last week.
In a defiant address to the nation on Monday night, Rajoelina said that he had been forced to move to a safe place because of threats to his life. An opposition official, a military source and a foreign diplomat told Reuters he had fled the country on Sunday aboard a French military plane.
His isolation increased further on Tuesday when even lawmakers from his ruling coalition, which holds a parliamentary majority, voted to impeach him on charges of engaging in activities deemed incompatible with presidential duties.
Rajoelina had repeatedly warned in recent days that an attempted coup was underway in the Indian Ocean island nation.
Escalating demonstrations
Demonstrations first erupted in the country on September 25 over water and power shortages and quickly escalated into an uprising over broader grievances, including corruption, bad governance and a lack of basic services.
The anger mirrored recent protests against ruling elites elsewhere, including Nepal and Morocco.
Earlier on Tuesday, at Antananarivo’s 13 May Square, along the main drag lined with palm trees and French colonial buildings, thousands of protesters danced, marched, sang and waved banners denouncing Rajoelina as a French stooge because of his dual citizenship and support from Madagascar’s former coloniser.
Many were waving Malagasy flags and the signature Gen Z protest banner of a skull and crossbones from the Japanese “One Piece” anime series.
At one point, Randrianirina took the stage and asked: “Are you ready to accept a military takeover?”, drawing cheers of approval from the crowd.
Later, as news of the military takeover filtered through to protesters, many were jubilant.
“We’re so happy Andry Rajoelina is finally gone … We will start again,” high-school student Fih Nomensanahary said, with four of her friends cheering alongside her.
Others were more cautious. “They need to hand over to a civilian administration quickly and have an election,” said Rezafy Lova, a 68-year-old IT consultant.
Economy in tatters
CAPSAT had joined the protesters over the weekend, saying it would refuse to fire on them. It went on to take charge of the military and appointed a new army chief, prompting Rajoelina to warn on Sunday of an illegal attempt to seize power.
Since then, the paramilitary gendarmerie and the police have also broken ranks with Rajoelina.
Madagascar, where the average age is less than 20, has a population of about 30 million, three-quarters of whom live in poverty. Between its independence in 1960 and 2020, GDP per capita plunged 45%, according to the World Bank.
Muslims across the world are celebrating Eid ul Fitr with traditional zeal and fervour, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
Families and communities are coming together for prayers, feasts, and charitable giving, reflecting on a month of fasting, spiritual reflection, and devotion. The celebrations are filled with joy, greetings of “Eid Mubarak,” and acts of kindness that highlight the essence of the festival.
Rescuers were searching for the crew and passengers of a Qatari military helicopter that crashed in the Gulf state´s waters after a “technical malfunction”, the government said early Sunday.
“A Qatari helicopter had a technical malfunction during a routine duty, which led to its crash in the regional waters of the State,” Qatar’s defence ministry said in a statement posted to X. “Searching operation for its crew members and passengers is in progress.”
The interior ministry said that several specialised teams have been deployed.
Qatar has not specified where the helicopter was flying or the number of people on board.
While Qatar has been targeted by several strikes since the start of the Middle East war, no connection has been made between this chopper and the conflict triggered by US-Israeli attacks on Iran.
- TSA staff shortages disrupt major airport travel.
- ICE agents not specifically trained for TSA duties.
- Democrat calls Trump’s ICE airport plan reckless.
US President Donald Trump threatened to deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to US airports on Monday if congressional Democrats do not immediately agree to fund airport safety.
Transportation Security Administration personnel are set to miss a second full paycheck on March 27 amid a partial government shutdown in its 36th day as lawmakers clash over funding for the Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency for TSA and ICE.
TSA officers have called in sick as paychecks have dried up, and the shortage of security agents has disrupted travel at major airports. More than 400 TSA workers have quit since the partial shutdown began on February 14, NBC News reported on Saturday, citing DHS.
“I will move our brilliant and patriotic ICE Agents to the Airports where they will do Security like no one has ever seen before,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Saturday.
In a subsequent post, Trump said the deployment would begin on Monday “if the Democrats do not allow for Just and Proper Security at our Airports, and elsewhere throughout our Country.”
TSA has about 65,000 employees, including 50,000 airport security officers.
ICE, central to Trump admin immigration crackdown
ICE agents are not specifically trained for airport security, which is TSA’s domain. ICE has played a central role in the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, drawing criticism from many Democrats, civil liberties advocates and immigration advocacy groups.
Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, criticised Trump’s proposal as “another reckless, lawless threat to misuse ICE agents.”
“He seems to have no concept of what the limits are on ICE, and I think America would be absolutely appalled to see ICE agents roaming through airports, just as they’ve been breaking down doors at homes,” Blumenthal told reporters in Washington.
Homeland Security historically has shifted resources across agencies during emergency staffing shortages, said Stewart Baker, who was a DHS policy official in President George W. Bush’s administration. Keeping TSA going without paying staff creates “serious trouble” for the agency, Baker said.
Using ICE agents for airport security “may be slower than using trained people, but it would be better than having nobody,” he added.
ICE, along with Customs and Border Protection, has deployed agents over the past few months to multiple areas as part of the crackdown, most recently to Minnesota in an operation that resulted in agents fatally shooting American citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
Their deaths sparked a backlash and led the Trump administration to adopt a more targeted approach in Minnesota.
Trump this month fired Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem amid growing criticism of the administration’s immigration tactics. The US Senate is considering the nomination of Senator Markwayne Mullin, an Oklahoma Republican, as the next DHS secretary.
Trump has said his immigration policies are intended to curb illegal immigration and improve national security.
Last year, the American Civil Liberties Union said TSA had provided lists of airport travellers to ICE, calling the move a break from TSA’s prior practices.
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