Bissau, Feb 3 (IANS): Fernando Vaz, the minister of tourism and spokesman for the government of Guinea-Bissau, confirmed that 11 people died during the failed coup attempt that took place earlier this week.

During a press conference, he specified that the dead included civilians, security guards and soldiers, calling Tuesday's failed attempt as "violent and barbaric", reports Xinhua news agency.

Vaz stressed the role of the security forces in the "well-planned coup d'etat, aimed at assassinating the President of the Republic, Umaro Sissoco Embalo", adding that "the government salutes the courage and determination of the defence and security forces which have prevented the subversion of the constitutional order".

He accused the actors of this act of wanting to install "chaos in the country", denounced external funding, and promised a thorough investigation to bring to justice "the material and moral authors" of this act.

The spokesman reiterated the commitment of the authorities to defend "democracy and the rule of law".

Late Tuesday, President Embalo announced that the coup had been thwarted and several civilians and soldiers had been arrested.

Embalo said the attackers tried to kill him and his entire cabinet at the government palace.

The attackers were linked to drug trafficking in the country, he said, without providing further details.

Gunfire erupted near government buildings on Tuesday in the capital of the West African nation, where the President was attending a cabinet meeting, the BBC reported.

Guinea-Bissau, with a population of just under two million people, has seen nine coups or attempted coups since 1980.

Over the past two years there have been military takeovers in Mali, Chad, Burkina Faso and Guinea, as well as further east in Sudan.