1960 — Mobutu's First Coup

On September 14, 1960, army chief Colonel Joseph-Désiré Mobutu announced over the radio that he was launching a "peaceful revolution" to break the Congo's political deadlock. He neutralized President Kasa-Vubu, Prime Minister Lumumba's government, and Parliament until the end of the year, saying "technicians" would run the country. He also ordered all Soviet-bloc embassies closed and placed Lumumba under house arrest, quietly siding with Kasa-Vubu.

Though Mobutu claimed he would restore democracy within months, the coup was the first step in his rise to absolute power. In November 1965 he seized power outright and ruled the Congo — renamed Zaire — as dictator for 32 years.