Mali President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita poses for a photo during the G5 Sahel summit on June 30, 2020, in Nouakchott. (LUDOVIC MARIN / POOL / AFP)

Mali’s military junta has released President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and allowed him to return to his residence in the capital, it said in a Facebook post Thursday.

Keita, who was overthrown in an Aug 18 coup, had been in military custody. He is still being guarded by army officers since his release late Wednesday

Keita, who was overthrown in an Aug 18 coup, had been in military custody. He is still being guarded by army officers since his release late Wednesday, said a person who spoke to Keita, declining to be identified because he’s not authorized to comment publicly on the matter.

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The Economic Community of West African States, which has led efforts to solve the political crisis in Mali, had called for his release. It had initially also demanded his reinstatement as president, but softened its stance after meeting with the junta in the capital, Bamako, over the weekend.

Keita, 75, dissolved his government and resigned under pressure from soldiers who detained him hours after they staged a mutiny at an army barracks on the outskirts of Bamako. 

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He was elected to office in 2013, just over a year after his predecessor, Amadou Toumani Toure, was himself ousted in a coup.

Many Malians celebrated his ouster, which came after weeks of popular protests calling for his resignation. The junta, which calls itself the National Committee for the Salvation of the People, said it intervened to bring an end to corruption and poor governance in the West African nation.

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