Antananarivo (Madagascar), 17 Oct

An army colonel who seized power in a military coup was sworn in as Madagascar's new leader Friday in a lightning-fast power grab that ousted the president and sent him fleeing from the country into hiding.

Col. Michael Randrianirina, the commander of an elite army unit, took the oath of office to become the new president at a ceremony in the main chamber of the nation's High Constitutional Court and in front of its nine red-robed judges.

His ascent to the presidency came just three days after he announced that the armed forces were taking power in the sprawling Indian Ocean island of around 30 million people off Africa's east coast.

The United Nations has condemned the military takeover as an unconstitutional change of government but there has been little significant reaction from other countries, including Madagascar's former colonial ruler, France.

The takeover — which came after three weeks of anti-government protests by mainly young people — led to Madagascar being suspended from the African Union.

President Andry Rajoelina's whereabouts are unknown after he left the country claiming his life was in danger following the rebellion by soldiers loyal to Randrianirina. He reportedly escaped on a French military plane. In his absence, Rajoelina was impeached in a vote in parliament on Tuesday, right before the colonel announced the military was taking power.

Randrianirina, who is believed to be 50 or 51 years old, swapped his military camouflage for a dark suit and blue tie for the swearing-in ceremony, which was attended by military officers, civilian officials and foreign diplomats. He took his oath with ceremonial military guards of honor on either side of the room.

The colonel, who emerged from relative obscurity to lead the rebellion by his CAPSAT military unit less than a week ago, was briefly imprisoned two years ago for an attempted mutiny. He said he spent most of the three months he was detained in late 2023 and early 2024 at a military hospital.

Madagascar has high rates of poverty, which affect around 75% of the population, according to the World Bank. The former French colony also has a tumultuous history of political instability since gaining independence in 1960 that has included several coups and attempted coups.

Rajoelina himself came to power as a transitional leader in 2009 after a military-backed coup.

Randrianirina has said Madagascar will be run by a military council with him as president for between 18 months and two years before any new elections, meaning the young people who inspired the uprising against Rajoelina may have a long wait before they are able to choose their new leader.

The protests, which began last month, have echoed other Gen Z-led uprisings in Nepal, Sri Lanka and elsewhere. Young Madagascans first took to the streets last month to rail against regular water and power outages, but have raised other issues, including the cost of living, the lack of opportunities and alleged corruption and nepotism by the elite.

Randrianirina seized on the momentum last weekend by turning against Rajoelina and joining the anti-government protests that called for the president and government ministers to step down. There was a brief clash between his soldiers and members of the gendarmerie security forces still loyal to Rajoelina, during which one CAPSAT soldier was killed, the colonel said.

But there has been no major violence on the streets and Randrianirina's troops have been cheered and their takeover celebrated by Madagascans.

Randrianirina said in an interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday that the military takeover was a move to “take responsibility as citizens and patriots.”

“From now on, we will restore the country to its former glory, fight against insecurity, and gradually try to solve the social problems that Malagasy people experience,” he said in an interview at his unit's barracks, where he announced his intention to take up the position of president.

Rajoelina's office has said a move earlier this week by the High Constitutional Court to invite Randrianirina to become the new president was flawed and claimed that some of the court's judges had been threatened.

On Thursday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the unconstitutional change of government and called “for the return to constitutional order and the rule of law,” his spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, said. The African Union said it "totally rejects” the takeover.