Most unintentionally ironic headline of the day

From the BBC World Service Africa's Twitter feed: "Madagascar's constitution becomes the basis of a cartoon".

This from a country where several months, a guy who was constitutionally too young to become president stole power from the democratically elected government in a military-backed coup.

Deposed Madagascar leader sentenced in absentia

A court in Madagascar has sentenced recently overthrown president Marc Ravolomanana in absentia to four years in prison for "abuse of office." The court also fined the former head of state $70 million.

Ravolomana was toppled earlier this year in an army-backed coup, in which then-opposition leader Andry Rajoelina seized power.

Madagascar mob coup confirmed by supreme court, condemned by southern Africa

The long power struggle in Madagascar between the elected president Marc Ravolomanana and the opposition leader Andry Rajoelina appears to have come to an end, with Ravolomanana resigning and Rajoelina being installed by the military. The seizure of power was confirmed on who knows what grounds by the country's supreme court. In addition to the illegal means by which Rajoelina confiscated power, he is also too young to be president according to the national constitution.

The BBC has a good Q & A on the power struggle. By all accounts, the dispute appears to be virtually free of ideology and was between two groups that wanted to gain/hold on to power for its own sake and by any means.

Ravolomanana and Rajoelina have more in common than they might admit. Both became very rich and well-known public figures. Both were elected mayor of the capital Antananarivo. Both used that power base to lead mobs to chase out the sitting president.

The main difference is that Ravolomanana used the mobs to chase out the former leader Didier Ratsiraka because the old admiral refused to recognize Ravolomanana's election victory. By contrast, Rajoelina has never stood in a national election. And in fact, the coup leader explicitly rejected an earlier call by Ravolomanana for a referendum on the then-legal president's rule.

The first act of 'President' Rajoelina was to dissolve the country's parliament.

The coup was denounced by the regional Southern African Development Organization and it is widely expected that the African Union will do the same.

Mob topples president, opposition leader confiscates power in Madagascar

Madagascar opposition leader Andry Rajoelina has unilaterally declared himself president as mobs backing him forced out the constitutionally-elected president Marc Ravalomanana. This came a day after the legal head of state, whose constitutional term ended in 2011, offered a referendum on his rule as solution to the country's political crisis. Rajoelina rejected this democratic olive branch.

Earlier, the African Union had warned against a coup d'Etat in the country but obviously their call went unheeded.

More on this as events unfold.

All hell breaks loose in Madagascar

All hell has broken loose in Madagascar as protests try to oust the president Marc Ravalomanana. At least 25 people were killed on Sunday as police opened fire on demonstrators who were marching toward the presidential palace. At least 68 people had been killed in protest events prior to this.

The country's defense minister has resigned over the most recent killings.

This is the escalation of a power struggle between Pres. Ravalomanana and Andry Rajoelina, mayor of the capital Antananarivo.

The president dismissed Rajoelina as mayor of the capital but Rajoelina countered by declaring a transition authority and naming his own prime minister.

The protesters accuse Ravalomanana of being a dicator and of misspending public money.

Previously mayor of the capital himself, Ravalomanana assumed the presidency in 2002 after leading street protests to oust the previous regime. Though in that case, it followed elections.