Guinea Bissau’s ousted president Embalo flees to Senegal after coup

Guinea Bissau’s ousted president, Umaro Sissoco Embalo, has arrived safely in Senegal after an unexpected military takeover that halted the release of election results and plunged the small West African nation into fresh uncertainty.

Senegal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed late on Thursday that Embalo had landed in Dakar aboard a plane chartered by the Senegalese government. Officials said Senegalese authorities had been in contact “with actors in Guinea Bissau to try to secure his release” before arranging his evacuation.

In a statement, Senegal said it “stands ready to work with ECOWAS, the African Union and all partners to support dialogue, stability and the rapid restoration of constitutional order and democratic legitimacy in this brotherly nation.”

Embalo’s removal came on Wednesday, when a group of senior officers declared they had taken “total control” of the country. The announcement came just as Guinea Bissau was awaiting the provisional results of its presidential election. Embalo, who was seeking a second term, and his main rival, Fernando Dias, had both claimed victory even before the vote tally was made public.

Dias later said he was safe but in hiding. His party had emerged as the strongest challenger after the main opposition PAIGC was barred from putting forward a presidential candidate.

The soldiers, calling themselves the High Military Command for the Restoration of Order, appeared on national television late Wednesday and announced the immediate suspension of the electoral process “until further notice.” They insisted the intervention was necessary to “protect the nation.”

On Thursday, General Horta Inta A was sworn in as transitional president. Surrounded by heavily armed soldiers, he defended the operation and said there was “sufficient evidence to justify the action.”

“We acted to block operations that aimed to threaten our democracy,” he told reporters. “The necessary measures are urgent and important and require everyone’s participation.”

The coup has drawn swift condemnation from regional organisations, which fear yet another break in democratic rule in a country that has experienced several military interventions since gaining independence from Portugal in 1974.

While Embalo begins an uncertain exile in Senegal, Guinea Bissau is entering a new political chapter with its borders reopened and the army firmly in charge.