The Gambia’s President Yayha Jammeh has returned to the country after a reported coup attempt, sources say.
Heavy gunfire was heard near the presidential palace in Banjul on Tuesday but officials say the military takeover was thwarted.
Details remain sketchy but Jammeh said there had been an attempted invasion from neighbouring Senegal.
He seized power in the tiny West African nation in 1994, and is accused of not tolerating any opposition.
An official told the BBC that everything had now returned to normal.
A pro-opposition radio station says most businesses are closed, while the market in the biggest town, Serekunda, is deserted.
Jammeh was said to have been in either France or Dubai during Tuesday’s unrest but different sources agree he has now returned.
Apart from a short Atlantic coast, The Gambia is entirely surrounded by Senegal.
Its main foreign currency earners are tourism and peanut exports.
Jammeh has won several elections since seizing power but critics say they are not free or fair.
Numerous officials and opposition leaders have fled the country, saying they fear for their lives.
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