Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya
His reign was marked by severe political turbulence, as Mauritania extracted itself from the war with the Polisario Front — started by Ould Daddah in 1975 — and his regime faced a number of coup attempts and military intrigues. On March 16, 1981 a coup attempt against Haidalla failed. Haidalla accused Morocco of being behind the coup, which Morocco denied, and in the next month Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya was appointed Prime Minister. Another attempted coup was allegedly sponsored by Libya.