Abidine Guindo

Abidine Guindo is a Malian colonel and the former commander of the 33rd Parachute Commando Regiment. He participated in and led the failed counter-coup attempt against Amadou Haya Sanogo in April 2012.

Biography Guindo was born in Mopti Region, and joined the 33rd Parachute Commando Regiment in 1975. As a 2nd class soldier in the Malian Army, he met Amadou Toumani Touré (ATT) in the late 1970s. In 1979, he was appointed as the jump instructor. Guindo later became one of ATT's most trusted companions, and was one of the eleven paratroopers responsible for the arrest of Moussa Traoré during the 1991 Malian coup d'état. The coup restored multi-party democracy in Mali, and Guindo subsequently became ATT's military second-in-command during the 1990s. Guindo launched a counter-coup attempt on April 30, but it had failed by the following day. He then fled into hiding, but was arrested by Sanogo's Malian Army on July 11, 2012. Guindo was released on November 9, 2013, as part of reconciliation measures between the 33rd regiment and Sanogo's troops. On February 20, 2018, Guindo was charged with "undermining the internal security of the state and illegal use of weapons" in regards to the counter-coup attempt. Guindo's adopted son Boubacar Mamadou Guindo, a sergeant, committed suicide on March 13, 2019.