6 arrested following attempted coup in Sao Tome

Six people were arrested following a foiled coup attempt on the African island of Sao Tome and Principe overnight Thursday, according to media sources.

"The general staff informed that they had arrested people on the basis of the declarations of the first group that was arrested and neutralised," Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada was quoted by media outlet Tela Non.

Delfim Neves, former president of the National Assembly and opposition leader Arlecio Costa, who is a former mercenary with the Buffalo Battalion, a South African mercenary group dismantled in 1993 by Pretoria, are among the six arrested by the armed forces.

Four men attacked military barracks during the night to seize weapons and deliver them to individuals parked in a van outside the facility, according to Trovoada. They four men condemned Neves and Costa.

An "efficient and professional reaction" by security forces foiled the plot and led to fighting that left one person injured, he said.

In a video reported by the local media, Trovoada said the wounded man was a lieutenant who was taken hostage by assailants during the operation which ended early Friday.

A lawyer for Neves demanded his immediate release.

"There is a public ministry to investigate in a democratic state. There are courts to investigate, otherwise we tear up the constitution and tell the international community that there is no constitution in the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Príncipe," he told the media.

The coup attempt is not unprecedented in Sao Tome and Principe where the Buffalo Battalion participated in another attempted overthrow of the government in 2009.

The situation was calm and under control while other suspects were being sought, according to Trovoada, who raised the possibility of complicity with army personnel.

He said an investigation has begun.