Madagascar’s president Andry Rajoelina has fled the African nation, the head of the opposition, a military source and a foreign diplomat said on Monday, the second time that young protesters have toppled a government in just over a month of worldwide Gen Z unrest.

Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko, leader of the opposition in parliament, told Reuters that Rajoelina left Madagascar on Sunday after units of the army defected and joined the protesters.

“We called the staff of the presidency and they confirmed that he left the country,” he said, adding that Rajoelina’s whereabouts were unknown.

The president’s office did not reply to requests for comment.

In an address to the nation broadcast on Facebook late on Monday, Rajoelina said he had to move to a safe location to protect his own life. He did not disclose his whereabouts but appeared defiant, saying that he would not “allow Madagascar to be destroyed”.

The diplomatic source said after the speech that Rajoelina was refusing to step down.

President left on French military plane

A military source told Reuters that Rajoelina flew out of Madagascar, a former French colony, on a French military aircraft on Sunday. French radio RFI said he had struck a deal with President Emmanuel Macron.

Macron, speaking in Egypt after a summit on the Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal, said he could not immediately confirm reports that France had helped Rajoelina to flee the country. He added that constitutional order must be preserved in Madagascar and that while France understood the grievances of the country’s youth, those grievances should not be exploited by military factions.

The military source said a French Army Casa aircraft landed in Madagascar’s Sainte Marie airport on Sunday. “Five minutes later, a helicopter arrived and transferred its passenger into the Casa,” the source said, adding that the passenger was Rajoelina.

Demonstrations had erupted in the country on September 25 over water and power shortages but quickly escalated into an uprising over broader grievances, including corruption, bad governance and a lack of basic services.

The anger mirrored recent protests against ruling elites elsewhere, including in Nepal, where the prime minister was forced to resign last month, and in Morocco.

Lost support of army, gendarmerie

Rajoelina had appeared increasingly isolated after losing the support of CAPSAT, an elite unit which had helped him to seize power in a 2009 coup.

CAPSAT joined the protesters over the weekend, saying it would refuse to fire on them and escorting thousands of demonstrators in the main square of the capital Antananarivo.

It later said it was taking charge of the military and appointed a new army chief, prompting Rajoelina to warn on Sunday of an attempt to seize power.

On Monday, a faction of the paramilitary gendarmerie supporting the protests also took control of the gendarmerie, naming a new chief for the force at a formal ceremony in the presence of senior government officials, a Reuters witness said.

The president of the Senate, a focus of public anger during the protests, was relieved of his functions, the Senate said in a statement. Jean André Ndremanjary was appointed as his replacement on a temporary basis.

If the president’s office falls vacant, the leader of the Senate takes the post until elections are held.

‘The president must quit’

On Monday, thousands of people gathered in a square in the capital, shouting: “the president must quit now”.

Hotel worker Adrianarivony Fanomegantsoa, 22, told Reuters he was joining the protests because his 300,000-ariary ($67) monthly salary was barely enough to cover food.

“In 16 years the president and his government have done nothing except enrich themselves while the people stay poor. And the youth, the Gen Z, suffer the most,” he said.

At least 22 people have been killed in clashes between protesters and the security forces since September 25, according to the United Nations.

Madagascar, where the median age is less than 20, has a population of about 30 million, three-quarters of whom live in poverty. GDP per capita plunged 45% from the time of independence in 1960 to 2020, according to the World Bank.

In what appeared to have been one of his last acts before leaving the country, Rajoelina issued pardons to several people on Sunday, including two French nationals, according to an internal document seen by Reuters whose contents were verified by a presidency source.

The two French nationals, Paul Maillot Rafanoharana and Francois Marc Philippe, had been convicted of undermining state security over an attempted coup in 2021.