(MENAFN) A faction of military officers in Guinea-Bissau declared on Wednesday that they had frozen the nation’s electoral process and placed state affairs under their supervision “until further notice,” according to a media outlet.

Identifying themselves as the "High Military Command for the Restoration of Order," the officers delivered a public declaration from the armed forces headquarters detailing the measures they were implementing.

They proclaimed the halt of the current electoral procedures, nullified both presidential and parliamentary vote outcomes, and put a stop to media broadcasts, while appealing to citizens to “remain calm.”

This military intervention occurred shortly after reports emerged of gunfire heard close to the presidential palace earlier in the day.

On Monday, independent contender Fernando Dias and the team of sitting President Umaro Sissoco Embalo each asserted victory following weekend presidential elections, even as the official tally had yet to be released.

According to the media outlet, Dias and former Prime Minister Domingos Simoes Pereira—his political supporter—were apprehended and transported to the Air Force Base.

Pereira, a prominent figure within the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC), which spearheaded the independence struggle against Portugal in 1974, had been barred from contesting this year’s election after authorities claimed his registration was submitted past the deadline.

Embalo stated to a French publication that he himself was detained around midday on Wednesday while at his office in the presidential palace; he added that the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, Gen. Biague Na Ntan, his deputy Gen. Mamadou Toure, and Interior Minister Botche Cande were arrested concurrently.

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