At least six people were killed in a failed attempt to overthrow Guinea-Bissau's President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, state radio said on Wednesday, as residents of the capital cautiously returned to daily life.
The dead in Tuesday's assault included four assailants and two members of the presidential guard, it said. Mr Embalo had announced on Tuesday night that the situation was under control after gunfire rang out for more than five hours near a government compound where he was holding a Cabinet meeting.
Only one democratically elected president has completed a full term since the West African country, which is home to about two million people, gained independence from Portugal in 1974.
West Africa has been hit by a string of military takeovers over the past 18 months — including two in Mali, one in Guinea and one in Burkina Faso last week — leading analysts to warn of “coup contagion".
The context appeared different in Guinea-Bissau. It remains unclear who was behind the attack but Mr Embalo suggested it was linked to the government's fight against drug trafficking rather than an army plan to seize power.
“It wasn't just a coup. It was an attempt to kill the president, the prime minister and all the Cabinet,” he said on Tuesday night.
The attack “was well prepared and organised and could also be related to people involved in drug trafficking”, he said, without giving details.
“I am fine, thanks be to God,” Mr Embalo said on Twitter. “The situation is under control.”
Guinea-Bissau became known as a transit point for cocaine between Latin America and Europe in the 2000s, when traffickers profited from corruption and weak law enforcement.
The 15-nation West African regional bloc, Ecowas, already grappling with three other coups in member states over the past 18 months, called Tuesday’s violence a coup attempt and said it was following the situation “with great concern”.
Portugal’s foreign ministry said in a tweet that it strongly condemned the attack in its former colony.
France on Wednesday condemned the coup attempt in Guinea-Bissau and expressed support for the government of Mr Embalo.
“France strongly condemns the coup attempt … urges respect for the constitutional order and expresses support for the democratic institutions,” the French foreign ministry said.
Since gaining independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced four coups d’etat and more than a dozen attempted power grabs.
Mr Embalo, a former army general, was declared the winner of the December 2019 run-off vote, although the results were contested by his opponent. He then started forming a new government with support from the military while a supreme court election challenge was still pending.
Tuesday’s coup attempt comes amid a wave of military takeovers in West Africa. Since August 2020, soldiers have grabbed power in Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso. Despite international pressure for a return to constitutional rule, none of the military rulers have yet to organise new elections.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called for the restoration of democratic order in Guinea-Bissau.
“We are seeing a terrible multiplication of coups and our strong appeal is for soldiers to go back to the barracks and for the constitutional order to be fully in place,” he said.
The region's mounting instability is scheduled for discussion at an Ecowas summit in Accra, Ghana, on Thursday.
