Red Cross officials also say hundreds of people were injured in Monday´s protests in the West African country. Opposition leader Sidya Toure was arrested during the protests and released Tuesday. When he returned home he said he found it had been ransacked.
Some 50,000 people gathered to protest against coup leader Capt. Moussa "Dadis" Camara. Camara told French radio Monday night that the shootings were the work of "uncontrollable elements" in the military.
Camara came to power in a December coup, hours after longtime dictator Lansana Conte died, and said he would not run in the election. But Camara has recently said he has the right to run.
International outrage over shooting of protestors
Meanwhile, other news sources reported international outrage over the incident. Bloomberg News reported that the African Union and European Union rebuked the Guinean army’s use of violence at a protest in which more than 80 people were killed in the country’s capital on Monday.
Al Jazeera channel reported that Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, deplored the "excessive use of force" and said he was "shocked by the loss of life, the high number of people injured and the destruction of property".
France, the former colonial ruler, condemned "the violent repression exercised by the army against the opposition and civil society during a peaceful demonstration held in Conakry".
According to the TV channel, a senior US official in Washington said: "We´re deeply concerned about the general breakdown in security in Conakry. We urge the Guinean government to exercise restraint and ensure the safety and security of Guinean and foreign nationals."
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