The leader of Guinea's military junta, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara has not met an African Union ultimatum asking him to promise in writing that he will not stand as a candidate in the January presidential elections. A senior AU official, Algerian Ramtane Lamamra, says that although the deadline has passed he is willing to give the junta more time to change its position.

International leaders and organisations have brought a great deal of pressure to bear on Guinea since the army opened fire on an opposition demonstration in the capital Conakry on 28 September, killing 157 people.

The demonstrators were calling for the resignation of Captain Camara, who seized power in December. The protests occurred after Captain Camara announced his intention to run for president despite an earlier pledge he would not seek election.

The Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, has imposed an arms embargo against Guinea. Earlier, the United Nations and the International Criminal Court in The Hague announced separate probes into possible human rights violations in Guinea.

Guinean President Captain Moussa Dadis Camara
Photo by Wikimedia Commons