US Accused of Backing Coup Attempt

Justin King Written by: theantimedia.org

Gambia’s President has accused the United States, along with other western powers of attempting a coup in the tiny African country. The coup attempt took place early Tuesday morning and ended in failure. President Yahya Jammeh was in Dubai at the time.

In an address he stated:

“It is an attack by dissidents based in the US, Germany and UK.”

He continued:

“This was not a coup. This was an attack by a terrorist group backed by some powers that I would not name.”

While President Jammeh did not publicly name the US, it is clear that he is seeking to place the blame squarely on the United States intelligence apparatus. The US State Department immediately denied any involvement.

Did the US attempt to oust Jammeh?

Background on Gambia:

Officially the country is called The Republic of Gambia, but nothing in the small country resembles a representative government. President Jammeh took power in 1994 after staging a coup of his own.  He was 29. Prior to that, the country had been ruled by Dawda Kairaba Jawara. Jawara ran the country with regular elections that were deemed fair and open ever since the nation came into existence following an end of colonial rule. Since Jammeh took power, there has not been a genuinely free election that went unmarred by fraud or intimidation. In 2009, a coup attempted to oust Jammeh. That coup was backed by his top general, top admiral, and the former chief of the country’s intelligence service. They were all executed.

The small nation, while active in regional affairs has no major political ties. Due to Gambia’s recognition of Taiwan, China severed ties in 1995.

The entire population of the country is about 1.8 million, which is smaller than Houston’s population. The majority of the country is Muslim.

The country is poor, and about a third of its people live on less than $1.25 per day. Its economy is based on agriculture and Gambia freely exports to the United States.

Analysis:

Due to the strained ties with China, Gambia would not be a target for political realignment in relation to China’s ever-growing presence in Africa.

While the country’s Muslim population is in the majority, Christians are free to practice.

The economic ties between Gambia and the United States are strong. The primary reason for clandestine US intervention has always been corporate interests, and none have been threatened.

President Jammeh has sustained coup attempts from within his own government in the past.

Unlike many other African nations, the country is not rich in minerals.

The general economy is weak and its population is poor. There is little economic interest in Gambia.

An anonymous source confirms that the US Africa Command was not on alert at the time of the coup, backing up State Department’s claim of non-involvement.

Jammeh’s rule has been oppressive to many minority groups within his nation. Any of these groups have clear motive for attempting a coup.

Conclusion:

While in most cases, an allegation about a US-backed coup can be taken seriously, this is most likely President Jammeh seeking to blame outside interests and play on Gambian fears of neo-colonialism to unite a country that is divided. It seems fairly evident that Jammeh luckily dodged a second coup attempt and does not want faith in his leadership to further falter. With no economic, strategic, or political benefit the likelihood of the coup being backed by the US is exceedingly slim.

If the Gambian people buy into the President’s line, Westerners and white Gambians should expect to be the targets of some form of low-level violence.

Update: Two US citizens with ties to Gambia have been arrested for their alleged role the coup. The two men traveled to Gambia to participate and flew back to the United States after the coup failed.