On Wednesday 15 November 2017 the military placed President Mugabe under house arrest and removed him from power. The military stated that the president was safe. The military placed tanks around government buildings in Harare and blocked the main road to the airport. Public opinion in the capital favored the dictators removal although they were uncertain about his replacement with another dictatorship. The Times reported that Emmerson Mnangagwa helped to orchestrate the coup. He had recently been sacked by Mr Mugabe so that the path could be smoothed for Grace Mugabe to replace her husband. A Zimbabwean army officer, Major General Sibusiso Moyo, went on television to say the military was targeting "criminals" around President Mugabe but not actively removing the president from power. However the head of the African Union described it as such.