Confusion in Anjouan after reports of coup

There was confusion as to who was in control in Anjouan on Tuesday one day after an attempted coup - the third in three months - was reported from the Indian Ocean island. News reports on Tuesday indicated that Gendarmerie chief Major Mohamed Bacar, apparently ousted on Monday, had seized the island's airport in a bid to regain power. AFP reported that, according to a military statement broadcast on radio, Bacar had recovered control of the radio station and quelled the putsch without bloodshed.

According to an AFP correspondent, a curfew was imposed overnight in Mutsamudu, the capital. AFP reported that Monday's uprising was staged by soldiers loyal to Ahmed Aboubacar Foundi, a civilian leader who was part of the regime led by Bacar that seized power on 9 August from Said Abeid Abderamane. Foundi's supporters had declared him the "first leader of the authority of Anjouan" and had taken control of the radio and the port in Matsamudu, AFP said. AP quoted a US engineer working on the island as saying that there was shooting near the airport on Monday. "People are off the streets," he was quoted as saying.

The report also said it was unclear whether anyone was in overall control of the island.