Guinea coup leader to form new government in weeks

President Alpha Condé was captured on Sunday

The leader of the coup which ousted Guinea's President Alpha Condé has said a new "union" government would be formed in weeks.

Col Mamady Doumbouya told ministers who served in Mr Condé's government that there would be no witch-hunt against former officials.

President Condé remains in detention, but his fate is unclear.

The UN, African Union and regional body Ecowas have condemned the coup and called for a return to civilian rule.

"I strongly condemn any takeover of the government by force of the gun and call for the immediate release of President Alpha Condé," UN Secretary-General António Guterres tweeted.

Col Doumbouya, who heads the army's special forces unit, did not say on Monday when the new government would be in place.

"A consultation will be launched to set down the broad parameters of the transition, and then a government of national union will be established to steer the transition," he said in his statement.

He told former ministers that they could not leave the country and had to hand over their official vehicles to the military. He also announced the reopening of land and air borders.

After the meeting Col Doumbouya drove around the capital, Conakry, which has been tense since Sunday when heavy gunfire was exchanged near the presidential building for several hours.

The BBC's reporter in the city says crowds chanted the military leader's name.

"They were just happy. Some people undressed and shouted 'Doumbouya, Doumbouya, Doumbouya' and 'freedom, freedom, freedom,'" Alhassan Sillah reported.

It captures the feeling of many who are relieved that President Condé has been deposed, he said.

• AFRICA LIVE: Reaction to the Guinea coup and more stories from the continent

• PROFILE: Who is Guinea's coup leader?

• FOOTBALL: Keita 'safe and well' in Guinea

• QUICK GUIDE: Guinea country profile

Col Doumbouya also urged mining companies to continue their operations in the country, adding that they would be exempt from the ongoing nationwide curfew.

Guinea is one of the world's biggest suppliers of bauxite, a necessary component of aluminium. Following the coup, prices of aluminium climbed to their highest in more than a decade due to concerns over supplies.

How did the coup happen?

In a broadcast on state TV on Sunday night, a group of soldiers said regional governors had been replaced by military commanders, and the ousted 83-year-old president was safe but in detention.

Col Doumbouya said his soldiers had seized power because they wanted to end rampant corruption, human rights abuses and mismanagement.

Young men celebrated the military takeover on Sunday

President Condé was re-elected for a controversial third term in office amid violent protests last year.

The veteran opposition leader was first elected in 2010 in the country's first democratic transfer of power.

Despite overseeing some economic progress, he has since been accused of presiding over numerous human rights abuses and harassment of his critics.

Mamoudou Nagnalen Barry, a founding member of the opposition National Front for the Defence of the Constitution (FNDC), told the BBC that he had mixed emotions about the coup, but that he mostly welcomed it.

"I will say that I'm sadly happy with what happened," he said.

"We don't want to be happy with a coup, but in certain circumstances like [the ones] in Guinea now, we will say we are really happy with what is happening because without that, the country will be stuck in [the] endless power of one person who wants to stay in power forever."

Mr Barry added he hoped the soldiers would hand power back to civilians.

Guinea's coup is the fourth time West Africa has witnessed an attempt to undermine democracy in the region since August 2020.

There have been two military takeovers in Mali and a failed attempt in Niger.