Bissau, Guinea-Bissau – November 26, 2025 – Guinea-Bissau’s military has taken full control of the country, suspending the ongoing election process and closing borders, just days after general elections.

Reports of heavy gunfire near the presidential palace marked the takeover, as soldiers blocked the main road leading to the building where President Umaro Sissoco Embalo was reportedly held alongside the chief of staff and interior minister.

Brigadier-General Denis N’Canha, head of the presidential military office, told reporters that a joint command of all military branches would govern the country “until further notice.” He cited a plan to destabilise the nation involving drug traffickers and illegal weapons as the reason for the intervention.

The military also suspended all media broadcasts and imposed a curfew. Official election results, due Thursday, were pre-empted by claims of victory from both Embalo and opposition candidate Fernando Dias.

Guinea-Bissau, one of the world’s poorest nations and a key transit point for drug trafficking between Latin America and Europe, has a history of political instability, including four coups since independence. The 2025 elections excluded the main opposition party PAIGC, which critics say was a manipulation to extend Embalo’s rule by decree since 2023.

Meanwhile, the country’s National Electoral Commission came under attack by unidentified armed men, adding to fears of escalating instability.