Gunfire erupts near Guinea's presidential palace and the military locks down the area

In this image made from video, a military truck is seen near the presidential palace in the capital Conakry, Guinea Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021. (AP Photo)

DAKAR, Senegal -

Shots were fired late Thursday near the presidential palace in Guinea's capital Conakry, and the army briefly locked down the city centre and evacuated it.

Local journalist Fode Toure, who was a few hundred metres from the presidential palace, told The Associated Press he heard gunshots and saw people running away in panic. An AP reporter near the palace saw heavily armed soldiers patrolling the streets.

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A diplomatic official close to Guinea's leader told the AP that 11 dissident soldiers opened fire on the special forces around the presidential palace, but they were overpowered by the special forces. Three of the assailants were killed and eight others arrested, he said, adding that the situation was under control. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to talk to reporters.

The official said the soldiers were loyal to Col. Celestin Bilivogui, who disappeared almost a year ago in mysterious conditions following his arrest by the special forces. Bilivogui was found dead on Wednesday, his family and lawyers said.

The lockdown of the centre of Conakry was later lifted.

The ruling junta denied that any gunshots took place calling it a "crazy" and "fabricated" rumour in a statement read on national television. It urged residents of the city centre to go about their business.

The West African nation has been led by a military regime since soldiers ousted President Alpha Conde in 2021. The West African regional bloc known as ECOWAS has pushed for a quick transition back to civilian rule and elections are scheduled for 2025.

Col. Mamadi Doumbouya, the country's leader, overthrew the president three years ago, saying he was preventing Guinea from slipping into chaos and chastised the previous government for broken promises.

However, since coming to power he's been criticized for being no better than his predecessor. In February, military leaders dissolved the government without explanation, saying a new one will be appointed.

Doumbouya has rebuffed attempts by the West and other developed countries to intervene in Africa's political challenges, saying Africans are "exhausted by the categorizations with which everyone wants to box us in."

Several West African nations including Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso have had coups that installed military juntas. They have severed or scaled back long-standing military ties with western powers in favour of security support from Russia.

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Ahmed reported from Bamako, Mali.