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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Military takes control in Guinea | Military takes control in Guinea |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Guinea's army has announced that it has dissolved the country's government and suspended the constitution, hours after the death of President Lansana Conte. | Guinea's army has announced that it has dissolved the country's government and suspended the constitution, hours after the death of President Lansana Conte. |
| In a state radio statement, Capt Moussa Dadis Camara said a "consultative council" of civilian and military leaders would be set up in their place. | In a state radio statement, Capt Moussa Dadis Camara said a "consultative council" of civilian and military leaders would be set up in their place. |
| State institutions were "incapable of resolving the crises which have been confronting the country", he said. | State institutions were "incapable of resolving the crises which have been confronting the country", he said. |
| Mr Conte had ruled the West African country with an iron fist since 1984. | Mr Conte had ruled the West African country with an iron fist since 1984. |
| The precise circumstances of the president's death are not yet known, but he had been suffering from diabetes. | The precise circumstances of the president's death are not yet known, but he had been suffering from diabetes. |
| Prime Minister Ahmed Souare earlier appealed for "calm and restraint" and declared 40 days of national mourning. | |
| 'Deep despair' | |
| Only hours after the speaker of parliament announced President Conte's death, Capt Camara went on state radio to say that the army had taken over, and a body called the National Council for Development and Democracy set up. | |
| Where I am is unusually quiet save for the noises of passing vehicles and there are very few BBC correspondent Alhassan Sillah, Conakry | |
| "As of today, the constitution is suspended as well as political and union activity," he said. | |
| "The government and the institutions of the republic have been dissolved." | |
| Capt Camara said the country was in a state of "deep despair" and that it was vital that something was done to improve the economy and combat corruption. | |
| He added that a military man would be installed as president, and a civilian as prime minister of a new, ethnically-balanced government. | |
| Lansana Conte seized power in 1984 and won three controversial elections Guinea's hardline president dies | |
| The BBC's Alhassan Sillah in the capital, Conakry, said there was no sign of troops on the streets. | |
| "Where I am is unusually quiet save for the noises of passing vehicles and there are very few," he told the BBC's Network Africa programme. | |
| "I've not seen one single child in school uniform and nor have I seen those women who should be going to the market as of now." | |
| Earlier, the leader of the Union for the Progress of Guinea and the secretary of the opposition alliance, Frad, Jean-Marie Dore, called for a peaceful transition of power: | |
| "The most important thing today is that our country's institutions be able to work to prevent unnecessary disorder in Guinea which would add to the current difficult situation," Mr Dore told Radio France Internationale. | |
| The African Union was "pre-occupied and keenly monitoring" the developments in Conakry, a senior official told the AFP news agency. |