Heavy security was deployed Tuesday after automatic gunfire rang out near Conakry's central prison in the Guinean capital's administrative centre where the presidency is located, according to an AFP journalist and witnesses.
The reason for gunfire in the west African nation, which is ruled with an iron fist by strongman Mamady Doumbouya, was not immediately clear.
"I heard the sound of vehicles speeding by, I rushed to the window and heard automatic gunfire," said Thierno Balde, an accountant who works in the neighbourhood, confirming similar accounts by other witnesses.
Neighbours of the prison said the shooting began shortly before 9:00 am (local and GMT) and lasted just more than a half hour.
Security blocked access to the area late Tuesday morning, although all routes to the prison were later reopened, an AFP journalist saw.
At least three armoured vehicles belonging to the special forces were also visible in front of the prison and three ambulances were seen leaving it.
Abdouramane Doukoure, a retired civil servant, said he was heading past the prison in a car when he "heard the gunshots. Since there was a traffic jam, we all rushed in different directions to escape."
Another resident, whose home is next to the prison, reported hearing gunfire inside the facility but "as we speak, things have calmed down".
"We don't know for how long," the resident added.
- Prison break -
Guinea's central prison is no stranger to violent episodes.
In 2023, nine people died in a jailbreak that saw armed commandos briefly pluck ex-dictator Moussa Dadis Camara from the facility.
He and three former officials who were on trial over a 2009 massacre during his presidency were taken from the prison.
Camara and two others were quickly returned, with one evading capture for months.
Camara and about 10 other former military and government officials, including the three colonels, stood accused over a massacre in 2009 carried out by security forces loyal to the then junta leader.
Some 156 people were killed and at least 109 women were raped at a political rally attended by opposition supporters in a Conakry stadium on September 28 and in the days that followed, according to a UN-mandated inquiry.
Camara was found guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced to 20 years but was later pardoned by Guinea's current leader.
Doumbouya, who overthrew civilian president Alpha Conde in September 2021, ruled the country as head of its junta until last month, when he was sworn in as president following elections.
Since its 1958 independence, Guinea has had a complex history of military and authoritarian rule.
The country is rich in minerals, but more than half of its inhabitants live below the poverty line, according to World Bank figures for 2024.
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