A group of army officers has seized power in coup-prone Guinea-Bissau after storming the presidential palace and declaring that all borders are closed.
They took to state TV to make the announcement after gunfire was heard at key locations in the capital, according to reports.
Senior army officers in Guinea-Bissau said Wednesday they have deposed President Umaro Sissoco Embalo and suspended the country’s disputed electoral process, citing the need to clarify the situation before returning to constitutional order.
The army officers said they had formed “The High Military Command for the Restoration of Order” and would be in charge of the West African nation until further notice.
The move came one day before the electoral commission was due to announce provisional results from a hotly contested presidential election between incumbent President Umaro Sissoco Embalo and top challenger Fernando Dias.
Both sides have claimed victory in Sunday’s first round.
The gunfire Wednesday was heard near the electoral commission headquarters, presidential palace and interior ministry, witnesses said.
It lasted for about an hour but appeared to have stopped by 1400 GMT, a Reuters journalist said.
Embalo told Jeune Afrique earlier in the day that he was being arrested as uniformed men stormed the palace as he sat in his office.
