Mali releases ex-interim president and PM from house arrest

Their detention by military officers in May marked Mali’s second coup since the overthrow of President Keita.

Former Malian interim President Bah Ndaw and his prime minister, Moctar Ouane, have been freed from house arrest by the authorities who deposed them in May, a committee monitoring the post-coup transition has said. Their detention by military officers in May marked Mali’s second coup since the overthrow of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita the previous August. The political upheaval alarmed regional powers and allies such as France, which feared it could delay a promised return to civilian rule via democratic elections scheduled for February 2022.