The military in the West African coastal state of Guinea-Bissau on Thursday announced that it has installed a new leader.

State broadcaster TGB reported that General Horta Inta-A is to serve as transitional president for a one-year period.

Much remains unclear about the balance of power in the country and the circumstances surrounding the alleged coup, days after presidential elections.

Eyewitnesses told dpa that the streets of the capital, Bissau, were deserted, while soldiers were deployed at key locations across the city.

A day earlier, a group of officers said they had taken power in the tropical nation of around 2.2 million people.

They said the military uncovered a plan to rig the elections and destabilise the country, involving politicians and a drug lord.

Guinea-Bissau is an important hub for cocaine smuggling between Latin America and Europe.

The now deposed President Umaro Sissoco Embaló reportedly told a French media outlet that he was detained by the military. However, he said he had not been harmed.

The military is also said to have detained Embaló’s challenger, Fernando Dias.

Both Embaló and Dias had declared themselves the winner after Sunday’s presidential election. The results have not yet been published.

Guinea-Bissau has experienced several coups and coup attempts since gaining independence from Portugal in 1974.

The military has been heavily involved in politics for many years.

Former general Embaló has been in power since 2020 and dissolved parliament at the end of 2023.

He has spoken several times in the past about coup attempts against him, most recently in October. (dpa/NAN)