Rabat — Guinea-Bissau’s deposed president, Umaro Sissoco Embalo, arrived in Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of Congo, on Saturday according to government sources who spoke to AFP.
Military officers announced Wednesday they had overthrown Embalo and suspended the November 23 presidential and legislative elections. Results are expected to be announced soon.
The West African Portuguese-speaking nation has a history marked by coups and attempted takeovers.
After soldiers briefly detained him Wednesday, Embalo left for Senegal on Thursday aboard a plane chartered by the Senegalese government.
He then traveled to Brazzaville on Saturday morning via private jet arranged by Congolese authorities.
“President Embalo arrived in Brazzaville to stay there,” a source close to the Congolese presidency told AFP anonymously.
Embalo maintains close ties with Congolese President Denis Sassou Nguesso and has visited Congo multiple times.
The coup leaders said Wednesday they acted to ensure “national security and restore order,” citing intelligence reports of a “plan to destabilize the country involving national drug barons.”
The ruling junta appointed General Horta N’Tam, previously army chief of staff, as transition president for a one-year period.
The military takeover drew widespread condemnation, including from UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who called it a “violation of democratic principles.”
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) suspended Guinea-Bissau from “all its decision-making bodies” on Thursday. The African Union also suspended the country from its institutions on Friday.
Guinea-Bissau, located between Senegal and Guinea, has experienced four coups and numerous coup attempts since gaining independence from Portugal in 1974. Election results in the country often spark disputes.
The impoverished nation of 2.2 million people struggles with corruption and serves as a major hub for drug trafficking between South America and Europe.