Guinea-Bissau arrests army commanders for alleged coup attempt

A group of senior officers of Guinea-Bissau's army have been arrested on accusations of attempting a coup, deputy chief of staff of the armed forces Mamadou Kourouma said on Friday.

Coups and unrest have been common in the West African country since independence from Portugal in 1974.

General Dahaba Na Walna, Commanders Domingos Nhanke and Mario Midana were among senior officers of the armed forces arrested on Thursday in their homes in the capital Bissau, Kourouma said.

He didn't provide all the names of arrested officers. Reuters was unable to reach the officers or representative for comment about the allegation.

Election campaign

"This is indeed a new attempt to subvert the constitutional order, on the eve of the start of the election campaign for the legislative and presidential elections on November 23," Kourouma told a press conference.

According to President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, there have been two attempts to overthrow him during his presidency, the latest in December 2023.

Embalo has been at odds with the political opposition, which says his current five-year term ran out at the end of February, while the Supreme Court of Justice has ruled that it ends on September 4.

In March, Embalo said he would run for a second term in November, backtracking on earlier vows to step down.