SUMMARY

Military faction (forces of Ibrahim Saleh) was an armed group that attempted a military coup in Cameroon on 6 April 1984. The goal of the group was to overthrow Cameroonian President Paul Biya. The attempted coup commenced one day after President Biya had announced the relocation of a number of officers, all from the northern part of the country, to other military units. This provoked rebellious factions within the Republican Guard - tasked with protecting the President of Cameroon – which was one of the military units affected by this policy. While it was never confirmed, the former Cameroonian President, Ahmadou Ahidjo, was suspected of having orchestrated the coup. Many of the rebellious Republican Guards had been handpicked by Ahidji during his rule.

Colonel Ibrahim Saleh – the deputy commander of the Republican Guard - led the Military faction, and its cadre members were mainly drawn from the Republican Guard. Out of the Republican Guard’s 1000 troops, around 500 was believed to have participated in the attempted coup. The military faction did however also include some member from the Cameroonian police and gendarmerie forces.

The Military faction was defeated by 9 April, and its high-ranking leaders arrested. Between 27 and 30 April 1984, 35 people accused of involvement in the coup attempt were tried and found guilty by a military tribunal. They were subsequently executed on 1 May. As a consequence of the attempted coup, the entire Republican Guard was disbanded and its remaining members were placed under the command of the chief of the National Gendarmerie.