NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania (Reuters) - Mauritania's capital trembled to the sound of shelling Monday as renegade soldiers fought for a second day with troops loyal to the northwest African country's president, a rare Arab friend of Israel.
Officials of President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, who is facing his toughest test since taking power in a bloodless 1984 coup, said special forces were mopping up isolated pockets of resistance.
Previous announcements that the crisis was over have however proved premature.
It was unclear who held the presidency after it was stormed by the dissident soldiers Sunday. Residents said loyalist reinforcements who rolled into town overnight had seized the airport. Sporadic gunfire continued elsewhere.
"There are just pockets. They are being cleaned out," said one official.
Split between black Africans and light-skinned Arabs, the almost exclusively Muslim country has recently been gripped by unease over the arrest of dozens of Taya's Islamist opponents.
The Arab president's friendship with Israel finds little favor in the largely desert country, where Saharan sand dunes roll down to the Atlantic coast.
State radio has been off the air since a brief announcement Sunday morning to say that Taya was in full control. M'Hamed said service would resume Monday.
Hospitals have struggled to cope with scores of wounded. Medical workers said they could not tell how many had been killed.
Residents say they believe the uprising was staged by an armored unit and the air force. Officials say in private they suspect the involvement of an officer removed two years ago for whipping up discontent over the links with Israel.
CRACKDOWN ON ISLAMISTS
The coup plotters have not made any public statement and it was unclear whether the attempted putsch was linked to growing political tension after a crackdown on Islamists and politicians close to ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein (news - web sites).
Thirty-two Islamic leaders were charged this month with threatening national security. Police sources said they were suspected of links to a foreign network of Islamic extremists.
There is widespread displeasure in Mauritania at Taya's longstanding ties with Israel. In 1999, Mauritania became only the third Arab League state to establish full diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.
Israel has given Mauritania help with agriculture and is also building a new hospital. Diplomats say that the Israelis also provide discreet assistance with security.
Taya, a former army colonel, won elections in 1992 and 1997 and has been expected to stand again later this year. Human rights groups often complain the government's methods are heavy-handed.
The country of fewer than three million people supports itself through iron ore mining and fishing, but there have been recent discoveries of offshore oil reserves.
Officials of President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, who is facing his toughest test since taking power in a bloodless 1984 coup, said special forces were mopping up isolated pockets of resistance.
Previous announcements that the crisis was over have however proved premature.
It was unclear who held the presidency after it was stormed by the dissident soldiers Sunday. Residents said loyalist reinforcements who rolled into town overnight had seized the airport. Sporadic gunfire continued elsewhere.
"There are just pockets. They are being cleaned out," said one official.
Split between black Africans and light-skinned Arabs, the almost exclusively Muslim country has recently been gripped by unease over the arrest of dozens of Taya's Islamist opponents.
The Arab president's friendship with Israel finds little favor in the largely desert country, where Saharan sand dunes roll down to the Atlantic coast.
State radio has been off the air since a brief announcement Sunday morning to say that Taya was in full control. M'Hamed said service would resume Monday.
Hospitals have struggled to cope with scores of wounded. Medical workers said they could not tell how many had been killed.
Residents say they believe the uprising was staged by an armored unit and the air force. Officials say in private they suspect the involvement of an officer removed two years ago for whipping up discontent over the links with Israel.
CRACKDOWN ON ISLAMISTS
The coup plotters have not made any public statement and it was unclear whether the attempted putsch was linked to growing political tension after a crackdown on Islamists and politicians close to ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein (news - web sites).
Thirty-two Islamic leaders were charged this month with threatening national security. Police sources said they were suspected of links to a foreign network of Islamic extremists.
There is widespread displeasure in Mauritania at Taya's longstanding ties with Israel. In 1999, Mauritania became only the third Arab League state to establish full diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.
Israel has given Mauritania help with agriculture and is also building a new hospital. Diplomats say that the Israelis also provide discreet assistance with security.
Taya, a former army colonel, won elections in 1992 and 1997 and has been expected to stand again later this year. Human rights groups often complain the government's methods are heavy-handed.
The country of fewer than three million people supports itself through iron ore mining and fishing, but there have been recent discoveries of offshore oil reserves.
