Guinea-Bissau military takes ‘total control’ amid election chaos

Soldiers in Guinea-Bissau have announced they are taking “total control” of the west African country, three days after elections that both the two main presidential contenders claim to have won.Military officers said they were suspending Guinea-Bissau’s electoral process and closing its borders, in a statement read out at the army’s headquarters in the capital Bissau and broadcast on state TV. They said they had formed “the high military command for the restoration of order”, which would rule the country until further notice.Earlier on Wednesday, shots were heard near the election commission headquarters, presidential palace and interior ministry, although it was not clear who was responsible.The military takeover is the latest in a string of coups and attempted coups in Guinea-Bissau since it gained independence from Portugal in 1974. The average yearly income in the country of 2.2 million people was just $963 (£728) in 2024, according to the World Bank.The UN labelled Guinea-Bissau a “narco state” in 2008 because of its role as a hub for the global cocaine trade. Situated between Senegal and Guinea, its coastline features numerous river deltas and the 88 islands of the Bijagós archipelago, which experts said had provided the natural, discrete drop-off points used by Colombian drug cartels.The incumbent president, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, had been vying to become the first president to win a second term in power in three decades. Both he and his main rival, Fernando Dias, claimed they won in the first round of elections, held on Sunday.Earlier on Wednesday, a spokesperson for Embaló claimed the shots were being fired by gunmen affiliated to Dias. But a Dias ally blamed Embaló for trying to simulate a coup attempt so that he could declare an emergency and retain power. Neither provided any evidence for their claims.The election commission was due to announce provisional results in the presidential and parliamentary elections on Thursday.There have been at least nine coups in Guinea-Bissau between independence and Embaló taking office in 2020, according to Reuters. Embaló claimed to have survived three coup attempts during his first term in office, the most recent in October.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionHowever, critics claimed Embaló had fabricated the putsch attempts, using them as an excuse to repress opposition. In December 2023, gunfire was heard for hours in Bissau, which Embaló said was an attempted coup. He dissolved parliament and Guinea-Bissau has not had a properly functioning legislature since.Agence France Presse and Reuters contributed to this report