Comoros, 1987 — dissident coup attempt
Event Summary
The dataset records an event coded as an attempted dissident coup in the Comoros on 30 November 1987 against President Ahmed Abdallah, whose autocratic rule over the Indian Ocean archipelago rested on the Presidential Guard commanded by the French mercenary Bob Denard. In late November 1987 a coup attempt was reportedly mounted by a small number of Presidential Guard and armed forces personnel against Abdallah, and it was thwarted, according to accounts, by the very French mercenaries and South African military advisers based in the Comoros who underpinned the regime. The episode was one of a series of plots and mutinies that punctuated Abdallah's rule, which depended heavily on foreign mercenaries and South African backing in defiance of international isolation.
Abdallah survived this attempt but not for long: in November 1989 he was assassinated in his palace by members of that same Presidential Guard, reportedly on the orders of Denard himself, an act that finally ended his rule and precipitated a French intervention that forced Denard and his mercenaries out of the Comoros.
Researched Details
Researched
Independent research, added record by record. Hover any label for what it means.
Sources
Editorial Note
Cross-Reference
Only one dataset carries it. One of the three reference datasets we check against carries this event; the others do not list it. That is not a contradiction — the datasets cover different periods and use different thresholds — but it means the record has had less outside corroboration.
Identifiers for finding this same event in the other datasets:
- Cline Center id
58111301987
How the match is made is described in crossref-report.md.
Outcome and Target
Coup Atlas research identifies the target as: President Ahmed Abdallah survived the November 1987 plot but was assassinated by his guard in 1989.
Baseline coding: Coup attempt failed to remove the incumbent. Recorded leader fate: remained in office; not physically harmed. The baseline file does not name individual targets; researched names are kept in a separate layer.
Baseline Dataset Citation
Baseline Source-Document Entries
Wikipedia
The Guardian
The Globe and Mail
This is the citation trail carried by the baseline dataset, grouped by outlet and rejoined from the line-wrapped original. Coup Atlas has not independently re-checked every document; read the original before citing a specific claim. URLs the import damaged beyond safe repair are shown as plain text and listed in citations-report.md. How this list is built →