Burkina Faso’s junta chief and new self-proclaimed leader, Ibrahim Traore, met with cabinet officials on Sunday following the military coup.

Former junta leader Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba also offered his resignation following talks with the new leader.

A few hours before events unfolded last Friday, hundreds of people rallied in the capital, Ouagadougou, seeking Damiba’s departure, the end of France’s military presence in the Sahel, and military cooperation with Russia.

This is the second time in less than one year that Burkina Faso has had a change in leadership. 

More than 40 percent of Burkina Faso remains outside government control.