BREAKING: Mali junta frees President Boubacar Keita

Mali military junta has released President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and allowed him to return to his residence in the capital.

Keita , who was overthrown in an Aug. 18 coup, was in military custody until his release late Wednesday night, said a source who claimed anonymity.

Bloomberg reports that he remains guarded by the military.

The Economic Community of West African States, which has led efforts to solve the political crisis in Mali, had called for his release. It had initially also demanded his reinstatement as president, but softened its stance after meeting with the junta in Bamako over the weekend.

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Keita, 75, was elected to office in 2013, just over a year after his predecessor, Amadou Toumani Toure, was himself ousted in a coup. T

That putsch was staged from the same barracks where last week’s mutiny started, and organized by junior officers frustrated by the lack of resources deployed to fight Tuareg separatists.

The subsequent instability was exploited by al-Qaeda-linked Islamist groups, who seized control of the north.

Many Malians celebrated the coup, which came after weeks of popular protests calling for Keita’s resignation.

Daily Times reports that former president Goodluck Jonathan, arrived in Mali’s capital, Bamako, five days ago to negotiate the release of Ibrahim Keita, and the restoration of a constitutional government.

The delegation was set up by the Economic Community of West African State following the political crisis rocking Mali and Keita’s resignation.