Guinea-Bissau has plunged into political chaos, with President Umaro Sissoco Embaló announcing he has been arrested at the presidential palace, alongside the armed forces’ chief of staff, deputy chief of staff, and the interior minister. The arrest comes shortly after the November 23 presidential election, in which both Embaló and opposition candidate Fernando Dias de Costa claimed victory, despite the lack of official results. Embaló described the incident as a “coup d’état” led by the army chief of staff, though no force was reportedly used against him. Analysts suggest this crisis was years in the making and was fueled by Embaló’s efforts to centralize power and marginalize rivals. This event exposes the deep institutional fragility in a nation where the military has long been the ultimate political arbiter, plunging its democratic process into uncertainty.
The African Report
