JUST-IN: Guinea-Bissau Military announces takeover, suspends elections, arrest politicians

Gunfire erupted near Guinea-Bissau’s presidential palace on Wednesday as soldiers in military uniform seized control of key routes in Bissau, intensifying fears of yet another coup in the politically fragile West African nation.

A dramatic scene unfolded earlier in the day when security forces took over the main road leading to the palace, forcing pedestrians and motorists to flee as shots rang out.

In the early afternoon, General Denis N’Canha, head of the presidential military office, announced that a command “composed of all branches of the armed forces” had taken “total control” of the country. Seated at a table and flanked by heavily armed soldiers, he declared that the military would oversee the nation’s affairs “until further notice.”

A senior officer told AFP on condition of anonymity that incumbent President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, widely expected to win Sunday’s election, was inside a building behind military headquarters “with the chief of staff and the minister of the interior.”

It was unclear whether he had been detained.

Both Embalo and opposition candidate Fernando Dias had already declared victory in the still-contested presidential race. Official provisional results were expected Thursday.

N’Canha claimed the military intervened to thwart an alleged destabilisation plot involving “national drug lords,” accusing unnamed actors of bringing weapons into the country to disrupt constitutional order.

The military also halted the entire electoral process, suspended media programming, and declared a mandatory curfew.

Guinea-Bissau, one of the world’s poorest nations, has long been a major transit point for cocaine smuggled from Latin America to Europe, a trade facilitated by decades of political instability. Since independence, the country has suffered four successful coups and several failed attempts.

The National Electoral Commission (CNE) was also attacked on Wednesday by unidentified armed men, according to CNE communications official Abdourahmane Djalo.

More than 6,780 security personnel, including ECOWAS Stabilisation Force members, had been deployed for this week’s elections.

But tensions have remained high. The last presidential election in 2019 resulted in a four-month standoff as opposing candidates both claimed victory.

The 2025 polls were especially contentious after the Supreme Court barred the long-dominant PAIGC party and its candidate, Domingos Simoes Pereira, from contesting, citing late submissions.

The opposition condemned the move as political “manipulation,” arguing that President Embalo’s mandate had already expired in February.

In 2023, Embalo dissolved the opposition-led legislature and has since ruled by decree.

As soldiers patrolled the streets on Wednesday, Guinea-Bissau once again found itself facing deep uncertainty, its fragile democracy suspended, its political future unclear, and its people bracing for what comes next.

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