Guinea-Bissau’s military authorities on Thursday appointed Major-General Horta N’Tam as transitional president, a day after soldiers ousted President Umaro Sissoco Embaló in a swift coup.
The junta, calling itself the High Military Command for the Restoration of Order, confirmed in a statement broadcast on national television that Gen. N’Tam will lead the country through a one-year transitional period.
Military officers seized “total control” of the country on Wednesday, suspending the electoral process, shutting borders, and arresting President Embaló along with several top government and military officials.
The junta accused the Embaló administration of undermining national stability.
The coup erupted as soldiers stormed key government installations, halting the announcement of provisional results from a tightly contested presidential election between Embaló and challenger Fernando Dias, 47. THEWILL had earlier reported heavy gunfire near the presidential palace and the electoral commission headquarters, lasting nearly an hour as the military moved to depose the government.
Guinea-Bissau, a known transit hub for cocaine smuggling to Europe, has long faced political volatility. N’Tam described the coup as necessary to prevent “narcotraffickers” from capturing Guinean democracy, adding that the one-year transition period would begin immediately.
At a swearing-in ceremony later Thursday, he appointed Major-General Tomas Djassi as army chief of staff.
The African Union has condemned the coup, calling for Embaló’s “immediate and unconditional” release. In a statement on X, AU Chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf urged all parties to exercise restraint, reaffirming the AU’s commitment to democratic governance in the region.
