Earth Science News
AFRICA NEWS
G.Bissau junta leader promoted to highest army rank as Uganda army chief apologises X post

G.Bissau junta leader promoted to highest army rank as Uganda army chief apologises X post

by AFP Staff Writers
Bissau (AFP) Jan 29, 2026

Guinea-Bissau's junta leader General Horta N'Tam has been promoted to the rank of major general -- the highest in the country's armed forces, according to a decree he signed and published himself on Thursday.

The army seized power in November just days after the country's presidential elections, overthrowing president Umaro Sissoco Embalo and suspending the electoral process.

The junta said it was taking control for one year and appointed N'Tam -- a close Embalo associate -- as transitional president.

It has set December 6 as the date for new presidential and legislative elections meant to return power to civilians.

N'Tam had previously held the rank of brigadier general. Under Thursday's decree, he has been "elevated to the rank of major general", now carrying four stars instead of two.

The junta claimed it seized power in November to prevent bloodshed between supporters of rival candidates in the elections.

Both president Embalo and opposition candidate Fernando Dias had declared victory even as the country still awaited official results.

Before November, the coastal west African country had already undergone four military takeovers and a host of attempted insurrections since gaining independence from Portugal in 1974.

Crippling poverty, chaotic administration and political chaos have also made Guinea-Bissau a fertile ground for corruption and drug smuggling.

Uganda army chief apologises over previous X post accusing US of helping opposition
Nairobi (AFP) Jan 30, 2026 - Uganda's army chief broke ties with the United States on Friday, accusing its embassy of helping missing opposition leader Bobi Wine, then reversed his stance an hour later.

"I want to apologise to our great friends the United States for my earlier tweets that I have now deleted," army chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who is also the son of the president, wrote on X.

"I was being fed with wrong information. I have spoken with the US Ambassador to our country and everything is okay," he added.

He had previously posted on X that he was cutting ties with the embassy, accusing it of helping to hide Wine, who has been on the run since elections this month.

As well as leading the Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF), Kainerugaba is the son of President Yoweri Museveni, 81, who has ruled the country for 40 years and this month won a seventh term.

Wine accused the government of "blatant theft" in the January 15 election and fled into hiding, saying the army had raided his home to take him into custody.

Kainerugaba, who many see as likely to succeed his father as president, is known for prolific and provocative posts on X.

He had earlier posted: "Because of the present situation where an opposition leader kidnapped himself and is missing; and according to our best intelligence did all this in co-ordination with the current administration at the US Embassy in our country (...) we as UPDF suspend ALL cooperation with the current administration at the US Embassy in Kampala."

He added that this would include its work in Somalia, where Uganda provides the main contingent of forces to the international coalition against Islamist insurgents.

The post was later deleted.

Last week, Kainerugaba threatened to hunt down and kill Wine, and boasted that his forces had killed 30 of his supporters, and arrested 2,000 more since the election.

Related Links
Africa News - Resources, Health, Food

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
AFRICA NEWS
Jihadist attacks kill Nigerian troops as US ramps up strikes in Somalia
Kano, Nigeria (AFP) Jan 27, 2026
At least nine Nigerian soldiers were killed and over a dozen are missing after IS-aligned jihadists ambushed a military patrol in northeast Borno state, military and militia sources told AFP Tuesday. Fighters from Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) on Friday used explosives and guns to attack a column of more than 30 troops on foot patrol outside the town of Damask near the border with Niger, the sources said. "We lost nine soldiers in an ambush by ISWAP terrorists and many others are s ... read more

AFRICA NEWS
Hong Kong ferry disaster ruled 'unlawful killing' after 13 years

Climate change fuels disasters, but deaths don't add up

China factory explosion death toll rises to 9

Poland moves to phase out aid for Ukrainian refugees

AFRICA NEWS
China starts large scale production of T1000 carbon fiber

Plastics everywhere, and the myth that made it possible

EU to show Google how to open up to rival AI services; Microsoft shares slide as AI spending surges

Smartphone kit offers low cost on site radiation dose checks

AFRICA NEWS
'So little we know': in submersibles revealing the deep sea

South Africa embraces water tastings as Washington reels from sewage leak

UN report warns world is entering era of global water bankruptcy

Long-awaited first snowfall brings relief to water-scarce Kabul

AFRICA NEWS
Solar cycles seen in Antarctic fast ice history

Danish PM backs NATO 'permanent presence' around Greenland

What are Russia and China doing in the Arctic?

In Greenland, locals fed up with deals done over their heads

AFRICA NEWS
'Our children are next' fear Kenyans as drought wipes out livestock

Chinese quadriplegic runs farm with just one finger

Cabio Biotech: Chinese firm under fire in infant formula recall

Warming trend to intensify crop droughts across Europe and beyond

AFRICA NEWS
Russian volcano puts on display in latest eruption

'I wanted to die': survivors recount Mozambique flood terror

South Africa's Kruger park suffers 'devastating' damage from floods

South Africa flood toll rises, large parts of Mozambique submerged

AFRICA NEWS
US military working with Nigeria as part of wider Islamic State pivot

Nigeria turns illegal loggers, poachers into park rangers

Sudan army says breaks RSF siege on southern city Dilling

Sudan hospital welcomes first patients after war forced it shut

AFRICA NEWS
Men's fashion goes low-risk in uncertain world

To flexibly organize thought, the brain makes use of space

China's birth rate falls to lowest on record

Moroccan fossils trace ancient African branch near origin of Homo sapiens

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.