On Monday, clashes with police in Guinea’s capital, Conakry, claimed the lives of two individuals, according to their families and medical sources.
The violence unfolded amid a nationwide strike causing city-wide paralysis and disruptions in mining operations.
The strike not only cleared main thoroughfares, closed banks, and shuttered markets but also sparked unrest in residential areas.
In response to living conditions under the junta-led government, groups of young men expressed their frustration through street demonstrations.
The casualties include Mamady Keïta, an 18-year-old student fatally shot in the chest in the Sonfonia district, and Ibrahima Touré, a 21-year-old motorbike taxi driver who succumbed to a bullet wound following clashes with security forces in another district, as confirmed by a hospital source.
While the police offered no immediate comment, a senior officer, speaking anonymously, confirmed Keita’s death without elaborating.
The potential for further unrest on Tuesday remained uncertain, but the ongoing strike, encompassing public, private, and informal sectors, is expected to persist.
The umbrella group representing various workers’ unions is advocating for reduced food prices, the removal of internet restrictions, and the implementation of a wage deal negotiated with the government in November.
The government, established by a military junta following a 2021 coup, has not officially responded. Over the past few years, it has suppressed recurring anti-government protests, occasionally resorting to violent means.
Guinea is the world’s second-largest bauxite producer. Traders on Monday said alumina prices in China were trading higher due to the strike, but the impact was limited for now due to Chinese inventories.
