Madagascan soldiers were cheered in the streets of the capital on Sunday as the country's president said an attempted coup was under way.

Military personnel were seen with celebrating demonstrators in Antananarivo as army leaders came out in support of anti-government protests.

A statement from President Andry Rajoelina’s office on Sunday said it “wishes to inform the nation and the international community that an attempt to seize power illegally and by force” has been “initiated.”

The statement offered no details on who was behind the attempt and no signs of violence were immediately visible on the streets on Sunday, although there was a large military presence.

Madagascar has been shaken by three weeks of the most significant unrest in years in the nation.

The protests are led by a group calling itself “Gen Z Madagascar,” and the United Nations says the demonstrations have left at least 22 people dead and dozens injured.

The government has disputed this number.

At a briefing, National Gendarmerie commander Brigadier General Nonos Mbinina Mamelison said there would no more "use of force" and thanked the Gen Z movement.

His comments followed claims at Saturday's protests by a commander of the army's elite CAPSAT unit that it had taken control of all of the armed forces.

Madagascar, a large island of 31 million people off the east coast of Africa, has had several leaders removed in coups since it gained independence from France in 1960.

Rajoelina himself first came to power as the leader of a transitional government following a 2009 military-backed coup.

An uprising by the CAPSAT unit was pivotal in that 2009 coup that brought Rajoelina to power.

He was elected president in 2018 and re-elected in 2023, a vote boycotted by opposition parties.

The youth-led protests against service failures and alleged government corruption and nepotism first erupted on September 25.

The protests began over electricity and water outages but have snowballed into larger dissatisfaction with the government and the leadership of Rajoelina.

Protesters have brought up a range of issues, including poverty and the cost of living, access to tertiary education, and alleged corruption and embezzlement of public funds by government officials and their families and associates.

Civic groups and trade unions have joined the protests, which have resulted in nighttime curfews being enforced in the capital, Antananarivo, and other major cities.

Rajoelina had attempted to appease the protesters by firing his entire government, including the prime minister, on September 29.

But he appointed a military general as the new prime minister and the protesters have not relented.

The Gen Z protesters that inspired the uprising have their own website, Facebook page and other social media channels and have a GoFundMe page to raise money.

They have mobilized over the internet and say they were inspired by other protests that toppled governments in Nepal and Sri Lanka.

AP video shot by Alexander Joe