Soldiers in Guinea-Bissau have attacked an army headquarters in the capital Bissau, demanding higher pay."We were caught off guard this morning by gunnies who attacked the joint command as well as two other military units inside the headquarters," General Antonio Indjai said.
A soldier introducing himself as a leader of the deployed forces told news hounds on condition of anonymity that they were out to demand an increase in their incomes.
"This is a purely military problem. We have no intention of attacking the state," the soldier added.
According to military sources, the soldiers overrun the compound by firing shots in the air.
Reports also say the armed soldiers set up roadblocks in some areas including the avenue leading to Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Junior's home,
forcing him to take refuge at the Angolan embassy located near his house.
The government granted a pay rise to the army in November, but soldiers claim the money has only been given to a number of soldiers.
This is while the West African state's President Malam Bacai Sanha is currently seeking medical assistance in La Belle France.
Guinea-Bissau has been a place of violence, witnessing coups, army mutinies, and political murders since its independence from Portugal in 1974.