 NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania (AP) - The military junta that overthrew Mauritania's government last week adopted a law Tuesday transferring the power of the presidency to the head of the junta.
| That's generally what happens after a successful coup ... |
| Yep, you get presidential powers, a parking pass, a shiny new sprocket and a sash with the knife holes neatly repaired and most of the bloodstains washed out. |
The 11-article law announced in a communique confers the rights of the highest office in the country in northwest Africa to the army general who led the Aug. 6 coup. The statement also claimed the coup was brought on by the deteriorating condition of daily life in Mauritania, the president's stonewalling of various government institutions and his firing of the chiefs of the armed forces.
The coup prompted the U.S. to cut off more than $20 million in aid. France also has frozen aid to Mauritania, and the European Union has threatened to cut off aid. The African Union suspended Mauritania from the 53-nation body because of the military takeover. The country borders Senegal, Mali, Algeria and Western Sahara. |