A group of army officers claimed total military control in coup-prone Guinea-Bissau on Wednesday, a day before the results from a contested presidential election were set to be announced.
In a statement read on state television, the army officers said they had deposed President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, suspended the electoral process, shut borders and would enforce a curfew.
The army officers also revealed that they had formed "The High Military Command for the Restoration of Order" and would take charge of the West African nation until further notice.
Shortly before the announcement, gunfire was heard near the electoral commission headquarters, presidential palace and interior ministry, reported NBC News.
It lasted for about an hour but appeared to have stopped by 4:45 p.m. local time (11:45 a.m. ET), while no news of casualties was reported.
The electoral commission had been due on Thursday to announce provisional results from Sunday's election in which Embalo faced off against top challenger Fernando Dias.
Umaro Sissoco Embalo was aiming to become the first president in three decades to win a second consecutive term in Guinea-Bissau, a small coastal nation between Senegal and Guinea.
A spokesperson for Embalo, Antonio Yaya Seidy, told Reuters that unidentified gunmen attacked the election commission to prevent an announcement of the vote results.
Guinea-Bissau had been shaken by at least nine coups and attempted coups between 1974, when it gained independence from Portugal, and 2020, when Embalo took office.
