Heavy Gunfire Heard Near Guinea`s Presidential Palace

KDRTV NEWS: Heavy gunfire has been heard near Guinea`s presidential palace in the capital of Conakry.

It was not immediately clear who was behind the unrest after the authorities in the West African countries took a long time to respond.

A senior government official had said that President Alpha Conde was unharmed; however, he did not give further details.

Reports indicate that many soldiers have sealed off the bridge connecting the rest of the city t the Kaloum neighborhood where many ministers and president resides.

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However, a military source said that the gunfire involved angry members of the special forces, an elite army group; however, it was unclear why the group was angry.

However, three witnesses said that they saw a civilian with gunshot wounds.

“I see groups of soldiers heading towards the presidency. There has been a lot of shooting,” said Ousmane Camara, a resident of Kaloum.

The terrified witnessed said that the soldiers offered them to stay indoors.

However, BBC has provided unconfirmed reports that three soldiers had been killed during the shootings.

Vehicles full of soldiers were also seen approaching the central bank close to the palace.

This gunfire emerged after the national parliament voted to increase the budget for the presidency and parliamentarians but a substantial decrease for the security officers like the police and the military.

“This comes a week after the national parliament voted an increase in budget for the presidency and parliamentarians, but a substantial decrease for those working in the security services like the police and the military,” said Aljazeera journalist.

President Conde won the third presidential term in violently disputed elections last October.