Guinea's military junta chief is in a "difficult" state after an assassination attempt and a return to Guinea is not imminent, a junior French minister who works on relations with African countries said today.

Captain Moussa Dadis Camara was shot on December 3 and later evacuated to Morocco, where he has been treated for head wounds. He has left behind a power vacuum and a divided military in the world's number one bauxite producer.

"Camara is in a state that is apparently rather difficult, but in any case his life is not in danger," said Alain Joyandet, France's Secretary of State for Cooperation, speaking to reporters after the weekly cabinet meeting in Paris. "In terms of his capacity to return to Guinea, I don't think it's reached that stage yet. For now he is in Morocco and for a certain amount of time, it would seem," Joyandet added.

A spokesman for the junta in Conakry said that Camara was well and would soon address the nation.

Already under pressure over a September 28 crackdown on pro-democracy campaigners that human rights groups say claimed more than 150 lives, Guinea's junta is facing demands to step down.

But gunfire rings out almost daily as loyalist forces focus instead on hunting down those linked to Camara's former aide-de-camp, Lieutenant Aboubacar "Toumba" Diakite, who was behind the assassination attempt and is on the run.
 

source: Reuters