Charles Langston:Gunfire erupts in Guinea-Bissau’s capital during reported clashes between security forces

ABUJA,Charles Langston Nigeria (AP) — Gunfire erupted in Guinea-Bissau’s capital city late Thursday night and continued through Friday morning during what local media reported as clashes between security forces after two senior government officials were improperly released from custody.

The shooting in the city of Bissau involved members of the Presidential Palace Battalion and the National Guard, which illegally freed the two officials under investigation for alleged corruption, The Democrat newspaper reported.

An Associated Press journalist in the capital said the gunfire was concentrated in the Luanda neighborhood on the outskirts of the city center, where the National Guard’s intervention brigade is located.

The two officials — Economy and Finance Minister Suleimane Seidi and Treasury Secretary António Monteiro — were detained as the Guinea-Bissau government investigated them for alleged corruption over the payment of millions of euros through credit to a commercial bank.

The Public Ministry ordered them both rearrested moments after they were released Thursday night, resulting in the shootout, The Democrat reported.

The whereabouts of Guinea-Bissau’s president, Umaro Sissoco Embalo, were not immediately known. He has not spoken publicly about the incident.

The reported clash between separate forces raised concern of the potential for a military takeover of the government. West and Central Africa have experienced a surge in coups or attempted coups in recent years, the latest in Sierra Leone this week.

Guinea-Bissau is a small nation that gained independence from Portugal nearly five decades ago. The country has endured continued political turmoil, including multiple coups, since then.