the army arrested the president and suspended the constitution

“We have decided, after arresting the president, who is currently with us, to abolish the current Constitution, to dissolve the institutions and also the government, as well as to close the land and air borders,” said the head of operations. special army, Lieutenant-Colonel Mamady Dumbuya, in a statement that circulated on social networks.

The officer later reiterated these statements during an appearance on national television – which interrupted his usual programming -, in which he was seen in uniform and wrapped in the Guinean flag, and criticized the “mess” of the government, according to the AFP news agency.

Coup sector released video allegedly proving Condé’s arrest, in which the 83-year-old president appears dressed in a shirt and jeans, seated on a sofa, and refuses to answer when asked if he has been mistreated.

“The president is with us, he is in a safe place and has been seen by a doctor,” Dumbuya later said, in a statement on French television France 24, according to the Europa Press agency.

The putschists explained that the president was arrested in the early hours of this morning in Conakry, the capital of this West African country, and announced the creation of a National Committee for Union and Development, which the government would assume, to draft a new constitution.

Witnesses said heavy automatic weapon fire was heard in Kalum, one of Conakry’s central neighborhoods, where the country’s main government and commercial offices are based.

“I saw a column of military vehicles carrying hooded soldiers, shooting in the air and chanting military slogans,” said one of the neighbors, according to AFP.

Another said the soldiers advised residents to lock themselves in their homes and not to go out.

As, a “Western diplomat” quoted not identified by this agency affirmed that a coup attempt was underway and that a group of soldiers occupied, at least temporarily, the presidential palace.

The diplomat added that the coup could be due to the government’s attempt to arrest, remove or remove Dumbuya from office.

Tras la confusión generada por el Ministerio de Defensa del gobierno de Condé, que en un comunicado sostuvo que las fuerzas leales al mandatario habían repelido al “grupo atacante” y frenado “la amenaza”, el golpe fue celebrado con júbilo en varias zonas de la capital city.

Instead, it was rejected by the UN Secretary General, the Antonio Guterres.

“I am closely following the situation in Guinea; I strongly condemn any takeover of power by the government by force of arms and call for the immediate release of the president, ”Guterres wrote on Twitter.

Among other consequences, the coup d’etat changed the agenda of the qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup, because for this reason the match that was to be played tomorrow in Conakry by the Guinea and Morocco.

Members of the Moroccan team remained “safe” and locked “in a hotel far from the center of the clashes”, while members of their federation tried “to evacuate the team today,” Mohamed Makrouf said. , boss of the Moroccan football federation. , according to the ANSA agency.

“We are at the hotel, we hear gunshots nearby throughout the day; we are waiting for clearance to go to the airport, for the moment we are locked up here even though a plane is waiting for us. “, said in turn the technical director of Morocco, the Bosnian Vahid Halilhodzic, to the French newspaper L’Equipe.

“No sabemos realmente qué esta pasando afuera del hotel; el palacio presidencial no está muy lejos de donde estamos nosotros, vi soldados corriendo por las calles, pero no sabemos bien qué pasa, los futbolistas no están seguros, la inquietud es tangible”, agregó the coach.

Guinea held presidential elections on October 18, 2020 and two days before central Conakry woke up blocked by members of the security forces, as the press reported a riot in a military barracks about 100 kilometers away. from the capital.

Then, Condé’s candidacy for a third term – for which he would be proclaimed on November 7 – sparked months of tension, with dozens of deaths and detainees of opponents.

Condé, a historic opponent, imprisoned and even sentenced to death, became the first democratically elected president in 2010 after decades of authoritarian regimes.

However, in recent years he has been accused of following an authoritarian path and in March 2020 he adopted a new constitution which was the subject of numerous protests which were harshly repressed.