Guinea-Bissau: Rebels on the run

General Mane held the airbase in his previous rebellion

Forces loyal to the president of Guinea-Bissau say troops supporting a former military ruler have been driven out of their base north of the capital.

The conflict was sparked by a dispute between President Kumba Yalla and the former military ruler, General Ansumane Mane, over military appointments.

Timeline

1973 - independence from Portugal

1980 - president ousted by Joao Bernardo Vieira

1994 - Vieira wins first multi-party elections

June 1998 - armed uprising begins

May 1999 - soldiers led by General Ansumane Mane topple Vieira

Jan 2000 - Kumba Yala wins civilian elections

20 Nov - Mane proclaims himself army chief-of-staff

An armed forces spokesman, Commander Zamora Induta, said supporters of General Ansumane Mane had been driven out of his headquarters at the airbase in the capital, Bissau.

Commander Induta said he wanted all those who had fled Bissau after fighting on Thursday morning to return home.

A correspondent for the BBC in Bissau, Felejeh Conte, said there was no fighting in the city centre on Thursday evening, but sporadic fire from heavy weapons could be heard from the direction of the airbase.

General 'fled'

He said the whereabouts of General Mane were not known but it was thought he could have fled north of the airbase.

A reporter for the French news agency who visited the airbase said there was no sign of General Mane or any of his supporters.

General Ansumane Mane: First launched a rebellion in 1998

When General Mane fought a previous president in 1998 he held the well-fortified airbase in fighting that lasted several months and dragged in the armies of neighbouring countries.

Hundreds of thousands of people were made homeless.

The president has accused General Mane of violating the constitution by using his influence in the army to try and block military appointments.

General Mane's supporters say that although President Kumba Yalla was elected to office, he has since made senior appointments on a tribal basis and that this has destabilised the army.

Warning

Before gunfire was first heard, late on Wednesday night, the UN Security Council warned General Mane that it would hold him responsible if the country slid into chaos.

President Yalla has also warned the army - which plays an important role in the country's politics - to obey the rule of law.

General Mane has had no official position in the military hierarchy since civilian rule was restored in February.

But in practice the former military junta has remained as a kind of parallel force.