West African leaders convened in an urgent virtual meeting on Thursday night to vehemently denounce Guinea-Bissau’s military takeover and call for the prompt reinstatement of constitutional governance, characterizing the events as a grave danger to the nation’s precarious democracy.
In order to evaluate the escalating crisis following the military takeover on November 26, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Mediation and Security Council (MSC) called an extraordinary meeting, presided over by President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone.
Following the coup, ECOWAS presidents unanimously agreed to bar Guinea-Bissau from participating in any regional bloc decision-making bodies until a comprehensive and sufficient constitutional order is restored.
Omar Touray, President of the ECOWAS Commission, gave a report to the MSC detailing the worsening circumstances after the coup. While commending voters for their “resilience and commitment to democracy” during the polls on November 23, leaders voiced concern over disturbances to the electoral process.
The post-session statement demanded the “unconditional restoration of constitutional order without delay” and denounced “in the strongest terms the coup d’état perpetrated on 26 November 2025.”
ECOWAS “rejects any arrangements that perpetuate the illegal abortion of the democratic process and the subversion of the will of the people of Guinea-Bissau,” according to the leaders.
They urged the coup organizers to let the National Electoral Commission announce the election results on November 23 right away. “Immediate and unconditional release of all detained officials, particularly President Umaro Sissoco Embalo and other electoral officials” was another demand made by ECOWAS.
Furthermore, ECOWAS cautioned the coup leaders that they would be held “both individually and collectively responsible” for the security of all detainees as well as the preservation of life and property in Guinea-Bissau.
ECOWAS said that a high-level mediation team, headed by the ECOWAS Chair and comprising the presidents of Togo, Cabo Verde, and Senegal, will visit Bissau to interact with the coup leaders as part of efforts to end the conflict. The objective seeks to guarantee the nation’s full restoration of constitutional order.
Additionally, the communiqué instructed the ECOWAS Stabilization Support Mission in Guinea-Bissau to keep defending state institutions and urged the country’s armed forces “to return to barracks and to maintain their constitutional role.”
As the meeting came to an end, ECOWAS reiterated that it “reserves the right to use all options” under its protocols, including penalties, against individuals deemed to have undermined democracy.
Echoing ECOWAS’s concerns, the African Union (AU) also denounced the military coup and called for President Embalo’s immediate and unconditional release.
Highlighting the necessity of preserving democracy in Guinea-Bissau, the European Union (EU) joined other international players in demanding a prompt return to constitutional order and the continuation of the electoral process.
Since President Embalo was arrested by armed forces on Wednesday and the announcement of the preliminary election results was stopped, Guinea-Bissau has been in political instability. On Thursday, Embalo, who had been in a close race against opposition candidate Fernando Dias da Costa, was transported to Senegal on a military plane and was said to be “safe and sound.”
General Horta N’Tam, the army chief of staff, was nominated by the military, which took control after the electoral dispute, to head a one-year transitional administration. After being sworn in at the military headquarters, General N’Tam confirmed his appointment.
Due to the country’s continued military rule, reports from Guinea-Bissau’s capital, Bissau, on Thursday revealed extensive market closures and soldiers manning strategic thoroughfares.
Since gaining independence in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has had multiple attempts and four successful coups.
