How did Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo take power in Equatorial Guinea in 1979?

Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo took power in Equatorial Guinea on August 3, 1979, by overthrowing his uncle, the country's first president, Francisco Macías Nguema, in a military coup.12

The coup, which became known as the "coup for freedom," was motivated by the extreme brutality of Macías’s regime, which included widespread human rights abuses. Obiang, who served as a lieutenant colonel and held several high-ranking military and government positions under his uncle, began plotting the takeover after Macías ordered the execution of Obiang’s brother and several other officers earlier that year.12

Following the successful coup, Obiang established a Supreme Military Council to govern the nation, and Macías was subsequently put on trial and executed in September 1979.12