Youth protests over electricity cuts, water shortages and longstanding government corruption erupted into full scale unrest across Antananarivo and beyond, gaining momentum after an elite military unit  defected and aligned with demonstrators demanding the resignation of President Andry Rajoelina. 

 As demonstrations swelled, the president’s hold on power appeared to collapse: Rajoelina announced he had fled the country for his safety in a video address from an undisclosed safe location, condemning what he called an “illegal power grab” without resigning. 

In a dramatic escalation, Rajoelina dissolved the national assembly via decree, attempting to halt impeachment efforts by lawmakers, though the legal validity of that move is disputed.  The sequence of events, military defection, widespread civil unrest and the president’s departure has plunged Madagascar into a deep constitutional crisis, leaving many to wonder who now holds real authority in the island nation.