Soldiers in Guinea-Bissau said they were taking “total control” of the west African state three days after elections in which both leading presidential contenders claimed victory.
Military officers announced on state television that they were suspending the electoral process, closing the country’s borders and had formed “the high military command for the restoration of order” to run the country until further notice. The statement was read at the army’s headquarters in the capital, Bissau.
Earlier on Wednesday, gunfire was reported near the election commission headquarters, the presidential palace and the interior ministry, though responsibility for the shots was unclear.
The takeover is the latest episode in a long history of coups and coup attempts since Guinea-Bissau gained independence from Portugal in 1974. The country of about 2.2 million people had an average per‑capita income of $963 in 2024, according to the World Bank.
In 2008 the UN described Guinea-Bissau as a “narco state” because of its role as a transshipment hub for cocaine. Located between Senegal and Guinea, its coastline, river deltas and the 88 islands of the Bijagós archipelago have been cited as discreet drop-off points used by drug cartels.
Incumbent president Umaro Sissoco Embaló was seeking a second term—the first president in three decades to do so. Both Embaló and his main rival, Fernando Dias, claimed victory in the first round held on Sunday.
An Embaló spokesperson accused gunmen linked to Dias of firing the shots, while an ally of Dias accused Embaló of staging a fake coup attempt to justify declaring an emergency and retaining power. Neither side produced evidence.
The election commission was due to announce provisional presidential and parliamentary results on Thursday.
Reuters reported there have been at least nine coups in Guinea-Bissau between independence and Embaló’s 2020 inauguration. Embaló says he survived three coup attempts during his first term, the most recent in October.
Critics, however, allege Embaló has fabricated putsch attempts to crack down on opposition. In December 2023 prolonged gunfire in Bissau was described by Embaló as an attempted coup; he subsequently dissolved parliament, and the country has had no fully functioning legislature since.
Agence France-Presse and Reuters contributed to this report.
