GUINEA-BISSAU President Umaro Sissoco Embaló Has Been Captured By Gunmen, Days After A Disputed Election In Which The Opposition Was Prevented From Fully Participating. It Is Not Yet Clear Who Carried Out The Capture, With Reports From The Capital, Bissau, Confirming Gunfire At Several Key Government Sites.
The Incident Comes As President Embaló And His Main Rival, Fernando Dias, Both Claimed Victory In Sunday's Presidential Election, Which Was Also Contested By Parliamentary Elections. Tensions Rose Further On Wednesday After Gunfire Was Reported Near The Headquarters Of The Electoral Commission, Hours Before Preliminary Results Were Due To Be Announced.
Witnesses, Including A Reuters Reporter, Said Many Residents Fled The Electoral Commission Compound As Gunfire Erupted. Other Reports Confirmed Gunfire Near The Interior Ministry And The Presidential Palace.
Embaló’s Spokesman, Antonio Yaya Seidy, Told Reuters That Unidentified Gunmen Stormed The Electoral Commission With The Aim Of Preventing The Announcement Of The Results, Claiming Without Evidence That The Perpetrators Had Links To Dias. Dias’s Spokesman Did Not Respond To Requests For Comment.
Guinea-Bissau, A Small West African Nation Bordered By Senegal And Guinea, Has A Long History Of Political Turmoil, Having Seen More Than Nine Coup Attempts Since It Gained Independence From Portugal In 1974. Embaló, Who Took Office In 2020, Has Claimed To Have Survived Several Coup Attempts, While His Opponents Accuse Him Of Using The Claims As A Pretext To Justify Political Repression.
Embaló Was Seeking To Become The First President In More Than 30 Years To Win A Second Consecutive Term. However, The Election Has Been Marred By Uncertainty After The Main Opposition Party, PAIGC, Was Prevented From Submitting Its Candidates By What Authorities Said Were Delays In Submitting Documents.
💬 PLEASE! KINDLY SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS IN THE COMMENTS.