US Army Special Forces troops were training special operations troops in the West African nation of Guinea when the Guineans left the training to take part in a coup organized by their commander.

The Guinean special operations troops stormed the presidential palace in the capital, Conakry, placing the country’s president, 83-year-old Alpha Condé, under house arrest at an undetermined location. A few hours later, Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, the commander of the Guinean special operations forces, announced the coup and the suspension of the country’s constitution.

Doumbouya was well-known to the Americans as he had participated in several joint American/Guinean exercises. He was a former officer in the French Foreign Legion and, at one time, a close ally of the deposed president.

Once the coup took place, the American Green Berets from the 3rd Special Forces Group, quickly suspended their activity and moved, with Guinea security personnel support, to the U.S. Embassy in Conakry.