(Bloomberg) --

Lesotho Prime Minister Thomas Thabane announced he will resign by the end of July, yielding to pressure from his ruling party to quit after his current wife was charged with murdering his ex-spouse.

Thabane offered to leave office earlier if “all the requisite preparations for my retirement are completed,” he said in a speech Thursday in the capital, Maseru.

Maesaiah Thabane was indicted Feb. 5 for allegedly killing Lipolelo Thabane. She wasn’t asked to plead in the case and she is due to appear again next month. The killing took place two days before Thabane was inaugurated as premier in June 2017.

Lesotho, a nation of about 3 million people that’s encircled by South Africa, has been riven by political turbulence and military coups since 1986. Opposition riots in 1998 prompted its neighbor to deploy troops to restore order. In 2014, Thabane temporarily fled the country after accusing the military of overthrowing him. The head of the army was shot dead three years later, leading to the deployment of troops from neighboring countries.

Thabane’s departure is unlikely bring an end to political instability and the odds are rising that the military could step in once again, Gary van Staden, an analyst with NKC African Economics, said last month.

While such an intervention would be problematic for other countries in the region that have sought to maintain civilian rule, it may be welcomed by citizens who’ve tired of political stalemates, infighting, frequent elections and unstable coalitions, he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mathabiso Ralengau in Johannesburg at mralengau@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Gordon Bell at gbell16@bloomberg.net, Paul Richardson

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