Equatorial Guinea says it thwarted 'coup’

Equatorial Guinea president Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. He is Africa’s longest-serving leader. FILE PHOTO | AFP

The West African state of Equatorial Guinea said Wednesday it had thwarted “a coup” in late December mounted by mercenaries who sought to attack President Teodoro Obiang Nguema, Africa’s longest-serving leader.

In a statement read on public radio, Security Minister Nicolas Obama Nchama said: “Mercenaries... were recruited by Equatorial Guinean militants from certain radical opposition parties with the support of certain powers.”