Mohamed Cissé, a young activist from the National Front for the Defense of the Constitution (FNDC), has recounted the abduction of himself and two other FNDC leaders, Foniké Menguè and Mamadou Billo Bah, in a video testimony.
On July 19th, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed “extreme concern” over the disappearance of the two activists and urged the transitional authorities to release them immediately and unconditionally unless they are formally charged according to established legal procedures.
Mohamed Cissé, who was detained in Conakry on July 9th, 2024, alongside FNDC leaders Foniké Menguè and Mamadou Billo Bah, has shared his ordeal after being released 24 hours later. Now in hiding, he reappeared in a video recorded in a secret location on July 21st, providing a gripping account of their arrest.
In the first part of the video, Mohamed Cissé describes how the three of them—Foniké Menguè, Mamadou Billo Bah, and himself—had just finished a preparatory meeting for a planned protest. They were with other FNDC members and were set to hold the demonstration the following day.
Mamadou Billo Bah, FNDC’s second-in-command, received a call warning that military vehicles were approaching. Before they could fully react, they were surrounded by heavily armed men and plainclothes gendarmes. According to Cissé, the armed men immediately announced their arrest. When Foniké Menguè questioned the legitimacy of their late-night operation, asking for an arrest warrant, a brief scuffle ensued. The armed men dragged Foniké Menguè by his feet across the ground.
Foniké Menguè, Mamadou Billo Bah, and Mohamed Cissé were forcibly taken, which the FNDC terms as “kidnapped.” They were placed in military armored vehicles, with Bah and Cissé transported together in one of four vehicles, while Menguè was in another. During the journey, they faced verbal threats and physical abuse, including being told their teeth would be extracted and suffering blows to their faces, ribs, and slaps.
The agitated soldiers repeatedly demanded to know why they were attempting to destabilize the regime and who was funding them. Their silence only intensified the soldiers’ anger until they reached the presidential grounds, Cissé recounts.
Foniké Menguè and Mamadou Billo Bah have not been seen since their arrest. The United Nations voiced its concern on July 19th, calling on the junta leaders to release the activists “immediately and unconditionally.”