Guinea's President Fires 173 Soldiers for Desertion, Including Coup Ally

Sun Sep 06 2026 03:02:33 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

President Mamadi Doumbouya dismisses 173 troops—among them a former coup commander—in a move to tighten control after winning a landslide election.

In a televised decree, Guinea’s civilian‑turned‑junta leader expelled 173 servicemen, including a colonel who helped seize power in 2021. The purge reflects Doumbouya's drive to consolidate authority after reversing a promise of no political role and facing opposition backlash under an entrenched military regime. The dismissals span multiple army branches amid a broader clampdown on civil liberties, including media shutdowns and arrests of dissenters.

Guinea's President Fires 173 Soldiers for Desertion, Including Coup Ally

President Mamadi Doumbouya, 41, has dismissed more than 170 soldiers for “desertion,” including Col Michel Lamah, a key ally in the 2021 coup that toppled former President Alpha Condé.

Lamah, who once commanded the Special Forces Group (GFS), now finds himself among those fired, as Doumbouya’s decree sweeps across various military branches.

Following the coup, Doumbouya pledged not to seek the presidency, promising a swift return to civilian rule. Yet, in December he stood for office and won with a landslide.

The dismissals, broadcast on state television, appear part of Doumbouya’s ongoing drive to consolidate power and curb any potential take‑overs.

Details surrounding the alleged desertions remain undisclosed, but a former military spokesman for the president read the decree into the nation on Monday.

The move echoes a broader crackdown on civil liberties: media outlets have been shut; protests banned; political parties suspended; activists detained or exiled. Two major opposition parties were excluded from last year’s election, where Doumbouya took 87 % of the vote.

Over the past five years, Doumbouya has focused on turning Guinea’s rich mineral resources into an industrial processing hub, while maintaining tight control of the armed forces.