Guinea-Bissau Military Coup: General Horta Nta Na Man Sworn In as Transitional President After Ousting Embalo

General Horta Nta Na Man was sworn in as Guinea-Bissau's transitional president on Thursday, one day after military officers ousted President Umaro Sissoco Embaló in the country's ninth coup or attempted coup since independence, plunging the West African nation back into political turmoil just days after a contentious election. 

The former army chief of staff took the oath of office during a brief ceremony at military headquarters in the capital, Bissau, where he declared he was assuming leadership of the High Military Command for a one-year transitional period announced by the army.​

The coup unfolded on Wednesday, 26 November, when Brigadier General Dinis Incanha, head of the presidential military office, announced on state television that the armed forces had taken “total control” of the country and arrested President Embaló, a day before official results from the 23 November presidential and legislative elections were due to be released. 

General Horta Nta Na Man, seen as a close associate of the deposed president, defended the takeover as an “urgent and essential” response to threats from drug traffickers allegedly seeking to destabilize the nation and manipulate the vote.​

President Embaló was detained at his office on Wednesday afternoon and later confirmed to French media that he had been deposed, though his exact whereabouts remained unclear on Thursday, with military sources saying he was being held at general staff headquarters and was “well-treated.” 

The capital Bissau remained mostly calm on Thursday, with soldiers visible on the streets, many residents staying indoors despite the lifting of an overnight curfew, and businesses and banks largely closed amid uncertainty.​

Arrests and institutional shutdown

The military operation led to the arrest of multiple senior security and political figures, including Army Chief of Staff General Biague Na Ntan, his deputy General Mamadou Touré, and Interior Minister Botche Candé, alongside President Embaló. 

Former Prime Minister Domingos Simões Pereira, long-time opposition leader who had been barred from running in the presidential race, was also detained, while opposition candidate Fernando Dias, who had claimed victory and gone into hiding, later told media he was safe.​

Soldiers arrested the head of the National Electoral Commission and sealed off its headquarters, effectively freezing the tabulation of votes. The junta, calling itself the “High Military Command for the Restoration of National Security and Public Order,” suspended political institutions and media outlets, halted the electoral process, closed international borders, imposed an open-ended night-time curfew, and tried to cut internet access nationwide.​

General Incanha justified the power grab by alleging the discovery of a broad destabilization plot involving politicians, drug traffickers, and domestic and foreign actors aiming to manipulate electoral results and introduce weapons into the country to undermine constitutional order. The military framed its actions as necessary to “restore security and public order,” even as critics described the move as a direct assault on Guinea-Bissau’s fragile democracy.​

International and regional condemnation

The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, condemned the coup and demanded the immediate, unconditional release of President Embaló and all detainees, invoking the AU’s zero-tolerance stance on unconstitutional changes of government and key normative instruments such as the AU Constitutive Act and the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance. 

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) issued a similar statement, stressing its strict opposition to military takeovers and calling for constitutional order to be restored.​

Joint observer missions from the African Union, ECOWAS, and the West African Elders Forum—led by former Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi, former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, and ECOWAS mission head Issifu Kamara—expressed “deep concern,” noting that they had previously praised the 23 November elections as peaceful, orderly, and well administered. 

The missions described the coup as a blatant attempt to derail the democratic process and urged the military to free detainees and allow the electoral process to run its course.​

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he was following the situation with deep concern and appealed to all national actors to show restraint and respect the rule of law. 

Portugal, Guinea-Bissau’s former colonial power, called for the rapid restoration of constitutional order and the resumption of normal institutional functions so that vote counting and the proclamation of results could be completed.​

South Africa’s ruling African National Congress also denounced the coup, warning that it undermines the democratic will of the Bissau-Guinean people and threatens regional stability. Other international partners signalled that they were considering diplomatic and economic responses, including potential ECOWAS sanctions, if the junta fails to commit to a credible transition back to civilian rule.​

Allegations of a “simulated coup”

Opposition figures accused President Embaló himself of triggering the crisis. In a video message, opposition candidate Fernando Dias alleged that Embaló staged a “false coup attempt” to disrupt the election once he realized he risked defeat, accusing the president of manipulating security forces to avoid the release of results.​

The Popular Front, a domestic civil society coalition, echoed those claims, saying Embaló and the army had orchestrated a “simulated coup” aimed at blocking the announcement of results and creating a pretext to reset the political game in his favour. Domingos Simões Pereira, leader of the PAIGC opposition party, had already accused Embaló earlier in the week of trying to fabricate a coup scenario after concluding he had lost the vote.​

These counter-claims have deepened political polarization, with some actors portraying the events as an internal power struggle within the ruling elite rather than a straightforward military intervention against a sitting president. The competing narratives—of a coup against an incumbent and of a staged crisis by that same incumbent—have further eroded public trust in institutions and raised questions about accountability.​

Electoral controversy and democratic backsliding

The coup took place against the backdrop of an already disputed electoral process. For the first time since independence in 1974, the main opposition party, PAIGC, was unable to field a presidential candidate after the Supreme Court disqualified the Pai Terra Ranka coalition in September 2025 for allegedly late documentation and barred Domingos Simões Pereira from running in October.​

On 25 November, both President Embaló and Fernando Dias claimed victory, even though provisional results had not been officially released, while twelve candidates had contested the presidential race, and turnout reportedly exceeded 65 percent. 

Civil society groups had already questioned the credibility of the poll because of the exclusion of major opposition forces, and ECOWAS withdrew its observer mission months earlier after tensions with the government, though the African Union maintained a presence.​

This is Guinea-Bissau’s ninth coup or attempted coup since independence in 1974, with the last successful one in 2012 and several failed plots in 2022, 2023, and late 2025, many of them targeting Embaló. Embaló dissolved the opposition-controlled National People’s Assembly in December 2023 after a coup attempt and ruled by decree thereafter, remaining in power and running for re-election even after his five-year term formally ended on 27 February 2025.​

Narco-state dynamics and security risks

Guinea-Bissau has long been labelled a “narco-state” by international bodies because it serves as a key transit point for cocaine shipments from Latin America, particularly Venezuela, to Europe. The country’s political and military elites have repeatedly been implicated in protecting or profiting from drug flows, with organized crime analysts describing the cocaine trade as a central pillar of power networks.​

Under Embaló’s presidency, the cocaine trade appeared to expand, with authorities seizing 2.63 tonnes of cocaine from a Venezuelan aircraft at Bissau’s international airport in September 2024, the largest drug bust in the country’s history. Traffickers routinely use the Bijagós Archipelago and other coastal routes to move narcotics ashore, before shipments continue northwards through Senegal, Guinea, Mali, and Mauritania.​

General Incanha cited the alleged involvement of drug traffickers and their political allies in the supposed destabilization plot as a key justification for the coup, positioning the military as acting to safeguard national security against criminal networks. 

Critics, however, note that elements within the security forces themselves have historically been complicit in trafficking, raising doubts about whether the takeover will curb or merely reconfigure criminal influence.​

Regional coup wave and continental impact

The Guinea-Bissau coup adds to a broader wave of military takeovers in West Africa, sometimes referred to as the region’s emerging “coup belt.” Between 2020 and 2023, Africa recorded more than a dozen coup attempts, with successful seizures of power in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, and Niger, many linked to governance failures, insecurity, and public frustration with political elites.​

Africa has seen roughly 220 coups or attempted coups since 1950, more than any other region, with over 100 successful cases. Regional bodies such as ECOWAS and the African Union now face renewed pressure to show that their zero-tolerance doctrines carry real consequences and can deter further military interventions.​

For West Africa, repeated coups undermine investor confidence, disrupt tourism, and weaken regional integration initiatives, including free-movement and trade frameworks championed by ECOWAS. Guinea-Bissau’s instability also heightens security concerns along the Gulf of Guinea, given the intersection of trafficking, weak state institutions, and cross-border militant and criminal networks.​

Economic, travel, and governance implications

For African travellers and regional businesses, border closures and curfews in Guinea-Bissau interrupt transport corridors that connect coastal and inland markets across West Africa. The country’s potential as an eco-tourism destination—particularly the UNESCO-listed Bijagós Archipelago—remains largely untapped because recurrent instability deters visitors and investment in sustainable tourism infrastructure.​

The prominence of cocaine trafficking in Guinea-Bissau’s political economy has broader implications for maritime security and law enforcement in the Gulf of Guinea region. International cooperation on interdiction has increased, but persistent corruption and weak oversight limit the effectiveness of anti-trafficking campaigns.​

The coup also highlights enduring tensions between civilian governments and powerful militaries in several African states, where security forces often act as kingmakers or veto players in politics. Guinea-Bissau’s experience serves as a warning that unresolved civil–military imbalances, combined with contested elections and criminal economies, can quickly unravel democratic gains.​

Uncertain transition and next steps

The military has announced a 12-month transitional period under General Horta Nta Na Man but has not yet provided a detailed roadmap for returning to civilian rule or clarifying how and when elections will be organized. Questions remain about whether the halted 23 November electoral process will resume, be annulled, or be replaced by a new timetable and legal framework.​

The African Union has called again for the immediate release of Embaló and all detained officials, while ECOWAS and international partners weigh potential sanctions, mediation initiatives, and other measures. Regional leaders are expected to convene emergency meetings in the coming days to coordinate responses and press the junta to commit to a credible transition.​

The whereabouts and condition of President Embaló and other detainees, including Domingos Simões Pereira, remained unconfirmed as of Thursday, adding to uncertainty and fears of human rights abuses. Meanwhile, more than 6,700 security personnel, including members of the ECOWAS Stabilisation Force deployed for the elections, are in the country, and their posture and role in the aftermath of the coup are still being defined.