In Bamako, few people ventured out on the second day of the takeover by soldiers who forced President Amadou Toumani Toure to flee as they revolted against the government's handling of a Tuareg-led insurrection in the north.
Mali's woes are viewed as a fallout of the demise of Muammar Gaddafi's regime, which employed the nomadic Tuareg who returned armed and jobless from Libya to their desert homes last year and intensified a decades-long independence battle.
The military, one of the continent's weakest according to analysts, was overwhelmed. It has blamed the government for lack of support to battle the Tuareg rebels. Mali is also threatened with a food crisis due to drought.
The international community reacted swiftly, roundly condemning the military junta and demanding a return to civilian rule, while the World Bank and African Development Bank suspended development aid after Mali's first coup in 21 years.
European Union ministers called yesterday for a return to constitutional rule.
"We do hope that the constitution will be restored very quickly and that we will see a return to law and order," EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said.