Guinea
It appears that Guinea’s President Alpha Conde has been toppled in a military coup but the situation remained unclear as night fell in the West African nation. Gunfire was heard in the capital Conakry this morning after which the defence ministry said it had repelled an attack by mutinous special forces. However, video later emerged on social media that appeared to show a captured Conde surrounded by soldiers. A group of officers led by Colonel Mamadi Doumbouya then appeared on television and said that they had seized power. Conde, a former opposition leader, came to power democratically but has been accused of becoming an authoritarian in recent years.
More from Al Jazeera here.
Iraq
Thirteen police officers have been killed in Iraq after an hour-long gunfight with fighters believed to belong to ISIS, a security official told the Associated Press. ISIS was in 2017 pushed from all of the Iraqi territory it had captured and its attacks are now relatively infrequent, though it does maintain a foothold in some regions.
More from AP here.
Ethiopia
Thousands of people have been killed in military clashes in Ethiopia, both sides have said, as the country’s 10-month-old civil war continues. Tigrayan rebel forces said they killed 3,073 Ethiopian government-allied fighters, while the government said it had killed 5,600 rebels. The figures are hard to verify but do at least underscore the intensity of a conflict that has pushed parts of Ethiopia to the brink of famine.
More from BBC here.