Military appoints transitional government in Guinea-Bissau
On Saturday, the military in Guinea-Bissau announced the formation of a one-year transitional government headed by General Horta Inta-A as transitional president. Former Finance Minister Ilídio Vieira Té was appointed prime minister, and his cabinet consists of 23 civilian and military ministers. This followed a political crisis in connection with the parliamentary and presidential elections on 23 November. Both incumbent Umaro Sissoco Embaló of the Madem G-15 party and Fernando Dias da Costa of the Partido da Renovação Social (PRS) had declared victory in the presidential election before the first results could be published. As a result, on 26 November, a group of generals calling themselves the ‘High Command for the Restoration of National Security and Public Order’ took power in order to stabilise the political order, according to their own statements.
However, local and regional observers expressed doubts as to whether the military takeover could be classified as a classic coup. Both interim president Inta-A and prime minister Vieira Té are considered close confidants of the deposed president Embaló. Embaló stated that he was arrested during the coup, however, he was able to speak to international media without any problems and left the country just one day later. The Bissau-Guinean opposition also suspects that Embaló was behind the coup and that it was an attempt to stop the publication of the election results. Meanwhile, the deputy head of the National Electoral Commission (CNE), Idriça Djalo, reported on Tuesday that during the takeover, a large part of the election documents and the computers of the electoral commission had been destroyed, meaning that no results could be published.
Meanwhile, the largest opposition party, the Partido Africano para a Independência da Guiné e Cabo Verde (PAIGC), reported that its candidate, former Prime Minister Domingo Simões Pereira, who had been excluded from the election, had been arrested along with other members during a raid on Saturday. After their exclusion, the PAIGC and Pereira had supported the candidacy of Dias da Costa, who himself managed to escape arrest but has since been granted political asylum at the Nigerian embassy in Bissau.
Internationally, the events are being treated as a coup. The African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) announced last Friday that they would suspend Guinea-Bissau from all bodies and activities due to the breach of democratic principles. An ECOWAS delegation led by Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio met with the new military government on Monday and announced further talks on a return to the constitution.
The deposed president Embaló is now in the Republic of Congo, after reportedly leaving his first place of refuge, Senegal, because its president, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, questioned the authenticity of the coup. This is not the first time that Embaló, who took office in spring 2020, has been accused of orchestrating a coup. Most recently, there was an alleged coup attempt at the end of November 2023, after which Embaló dissolved parliament. Until the recent election, he had repeatedly postponed the date for new elections, leaving Guinea-Bissau without an elected legislature since December 2023.
Niger announces international sale of uranium
On Sunday, the Nigerien government announced that it would commercialise uranium mined by the Société des mines de l’Aïr (Somaïr) internationally. Niger’s president and military leader, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, stated that Niger had the legitimate right to dispose of its natural resources and sell them on international markets. According to various reports, a convoy transporting 1,050 tonnes of uranium from the Somaïr mine is already on its way from Arlit, in northern Niger, via Burkina Faso to the port of Lomé in Togo. This is the first time that the Nigerien government has marketed uranium independently.
Until the middle of this year, Somaïr was majority-owned by Orano, a uranium mining company that is in turn 90% owned by the French government. Orano owned 63.4% of Somaïr, with the remaining 36.6% belonging to the mining holding company SOPAMIN (Société du Patrimoine des Mines du Niger) owned by the Nigerien government. After General Tchiani seized power, the military leadership initially halted all exports, and at the end of 2024, Orano lost operational control of its mines in Niger. In June 2025,, Somaïr was completely nationalised by Tchiani’s government. The takeover was justified on the grounds of redressing a historical imbalance. According to official sources, since the mine began operating in 1971, Orano had received 86.3% of the uranium marketed – a share significantly higher than its capital share. Thereafter, Orano on its part referred the case to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), part of the World Bank Group, whose arbitration tribunal issued a binding ruling in favour of Orano at the end of September, prohibiting Niger from selling uranium from the Somaïr mine. Accordingly, Orano reported that the current convoy heading for Lomé was in violation of the ICSID rulings. Orano also pointed out the risk of contamination that the shipment could entail, as there was no confirmation that international transport standards were being complied with for the convoy.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Niger’s Ministry of Justice accused Orano of failing to properly treat and dispose of radioactive waste in Madaouela, a site near the Arlit mine. It said that 400 barrels of radioactive nuclear material had been found there and that harmful radiation levels of 7-10 microsieverts per hour (µSv/h) had been measured instead of the usual 0.5 µSv/h. In this context, some media outlets are predicting that Niger will sue Orano for radioactive contamination. For its part, Orano states that it has not yet received any notification from the Nigerien government in this regard and denies having been active at the Madaouela exploration site at all, as it does not have an operating license.
Given France’s state ownership of Orano, recent developments also reflect tensions between Niger and the former colonial power. Niger is the seventh-largest producer of uranium, which is used in nuclear reactors and for the manufacture of nuclear weapons, and whose decay products can be used for medical purposes. Niger’s uranium is particularly important for the European Union’s (EU) energy sector: according to the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), the Sahelian state supplied 25.38% of the uranium purchased by the EU in 2022. Russia has also shown interest in Niger’s uranium, with Niger and the Russian nuclear energy organisation Rosatom signing a memorandum of understanding in July. Although the content has not been made public, French sources speak of an agreement to sell 1,000 tonnes of yellowcake, a yellow powder obtained from uranium ore after processing. No official statements have yet been made about the buyers of the latest uranium shipment, but some sources mention that both Turkish and Iranian companies as well as Russian ones have signaled interest in buying Niger’s uranium.
Breaking News
On Thursday, Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame and the President of DR Congo Félix Tshisekedi signed a new peace agreement in Washington, building on a basic agreement concluded several months ago (Press review KW27/2025).The host and political mediator was US President Donald Trump, who initiated the signing and accompanied it with great publicity. The foreign ministers of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates also attended the ceremony. The agreement provides for the withdrawal of Rwandan troops and emphasises that all parties should respect national borders and sovereignty and cease support for armed groups. It remains to be seen to what extent the peace agreement can be successfully implemented – on the same day, reports emerged of continued fighting in South Kivu.
In other news?
The 22nd Marrakech International Film Festival opened last Friday and will run until tomorrow, Saturday. With more than 80 films from 31 countries, the festival highlights its role as a cultural hub between Africa, the Middle East, and global cinema. This year’s jury president, South Korean director and screenwriter Bong Joon-ho, emphasised the festival’s value as a unique platform for discovering up-and-coming filmmakers. Young African and Arab talents are given the opportunity to interact with regional and international film greats in various workshops. Competing for the festival’s main prize, the Golden Star (Étoile d’Or), are films such as the drama Aisha Can’t Fly Away by Egyptian director Morad Mostafa and the South African production Laundry by Zamo Mkhwanazi. Further contributions include Behind the Palm Tree by Moroccan director Meryem Benm’Barek, which celebrated its world premiere. This year’s festival jury is made up of award-winning international directors, actors and screenwriters, including Hollywood star Jenna Ortega and Moroccan director Hakim Belabbes. Prior to the announcement of the winning film on Sunday, a number of film personalities will receive individual honours. The first day of the festival ended with an emotional tribute to Egyptian film legend Hussein Fahmi.