Mali junta says 'Western-backed' military officers attempted coup

FILE PHOTO: Colonel Assimi Goita, leader of Malian military junta, attends an Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) consultative meeting in Accra, Ghana September 15, 2020. REUTERS/ Francis Kokoroko//File Photo

BAMAKO (Reuters) - Mali's interim government on Monday said "Western-backed" military officers attempted a coup last week, without providing details or evidence.

The purported foiled putsch took place on the night between May 11 and May 12, the junta that took power in an August 2020 coup said in a statement.