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NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania (AP) — Mauritania's president, who initially took power in a coup, says he will run again in upcoming elections.
President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz came to power in 2008 in a putsch that ousted the West African country's first democratically elected leader. He won presidential elections the following year and has since become a key ally of the West in the fight against terrorism in the Sahara.
But opposition parties largely boycotted last year's legislative elections, the first since Aziz came to power, because of concerns the vote would not be credible. Aziz's party won a majority, ensuring the president's complete control of the state.
Elections will be held June 21.
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