Officers say they are closing borders and suspending poll as president and main rival both claim victory

Soldiers in Guinea-Bissau have announced they are taking “total control” of the west African country, three days after elections that both the two main presidential contenders claim to have won.

Military officers said they were suspending Guinea-Bissau’s electoral process and closing its borders, in a statement read out at the army’s headquarters in the capital Bissau and broadcast on state TV. They said they had formed “the high military command for the restoration of order”, which would rule the country until further notice.

City of Bissau, which has a population of more than 490,000, had no electricity for one-and-a-half days

Power returned to Guinea-Bissau’s capital on Wednesday afternoon after the west African country’s government resumed payments to Turkish company Karpowership, which had plunged the city into darkness due to an unpaid debt of $17m.

Karpowership said it cut off electricity supplies to the city of Bissau – which has a population of more than 490,000 – for one and a half days when fuel suppliers paused work after a protracted period of non-payment.

Heavily armed men and gunfire reported near government offices but statement says attack against democracy failed

Guinea-Bissau’s president, Umaro Cissoco Embaló, has said the situation in the country is “under control” following fears of an attempted coup and heavy gunfire in the capital.

Gunshots erupted near the government palace in Guinea-Bissau’s capital on Tuesday afternoon, sparking fears of a coup attempt in the west African country, which has suffered repeated military takeovers.