A group of army officers in Guinea-Bissau has announced the suspension of the country’s electoral process, declaring that they are taking control “until further notice.”
The officials who describe themselves as the “High Military Command for the Restoration of Order” read out the televised announcement on Wednesday.
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Reuters reported that the group of military officials stated they had removed President Umaro Embalo from power, halted the electoral process, closed the country’s borders, and would enforce a curfew.
The coup in Guinea-Bissau comes on the eve of the expected announcement of results from a closely fought presidential election.
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The electoral commission was expected to release the results of Sunday’s vote on Thursday. The election pitted incumbent President Embalo, representing Madem‑G15, against leading opposition candidate Fernando Dias, candidate of the Party for Social Renewal (PRS).
Reuters also reported that shortly before Wednesday’s announcement, gunshots were heard near the electoral commission headquarters, presidential palace and interior ministry.
The gunfire lasted for about an hour. However, no casualties have been recorded yet.
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According to a spokesperson of the president, Antonio Seidy, the gunmen attacked the election commission to prevent an announcement of the vote results.
He also claimed that the attackers were affiliated with the opposition candidate, Mr Dias.
However, the former Prime Minister, Domingos Pereira, who was defeated by Mr Embaló in 2019, insisted that Mr Dias was not involved in the incident.
Mr Pereira, who had earlier endorsed Mr Dias, said the candidate had been in a meeting where the guns were fired, and news of the incident broke.
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The West African country is the latest to experience a military takeover, following a string of coups in the region in the last few years. Some of the countries that have witnessed coups in the region are Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Gabon.
Guinea-Bissau has experienced at least nine coups or attempted coups between 1974, the year it gained independence from Portugal, and 2020, when Mr Embaló assumed the presidency.
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