Violence after Diallo claims victory in Guinea

Gunfire rang out across Guinea's capital on Wednesday and authorities reported at least nine deaths across the West African country as tensions mounted in anticipation of official results being released from a weekend presidential election.Security forces fired tear gas to disperse opposition supporters who had erected barricades in the streets after just a few partial election results were released on Tuesday night — all showing President Alpha Conde in the lead.

Election officials have said it could take until the end of the week to gather and count all ballots from across the West African country. But opposition candidate Cellou Dalein Diallo already has declared himself the winner of Sunday's election without citing figures, and his party already has put out a statement referring to him as “President.”On a video posted on his twitter account on Wednesday night, Diallo said that his house is surrounded by security forces and that nobody can get in or out.In the same video, Diallo call his supporters to "continue the fight until victory."

He said that according to the numbers his party and some allies have, 53% of the votes went to him and not to Alpha Conde.Diallo's claim of victory infuriated supporters of the incumbent president, who had sought constitutional changes earlier this year so that he could seek yet another term.

Guinea's security ministry said that four gunshot victims had been brought to local morgues in the capital, Conakry, while three other deaths were recorded in Kissidougou.A police officer was lynched to death in Bambeto and another officer was fatally stabbed elsewhere, the government said.

(Image Credit: AP) 

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