Guinea-Bissau leader Malam Bacai Sanha dies in Paris

Guinea-Bissau's President Malam Bacai Sanha has died in hospital in Paris, according to a statement from his office read over national radio.

The 64-year-old had travelled to France for medical treatment in late November after being taken seriously ill.

Malam Bacai Sanha had suffered from ill-health since being elected in 2009.Mr Sanha was elected president in 2009 after years of unrest and coups.

Last month the United States warned its citizens in Guinea-Bissau that there was increased potential for political instability and civil unrest there.

The nature of the president's illness has not been made public but he was thought to suffer from diabetes.

Mr Sanha had previously been in intensive care in neighbouring Senegal.

The statement from Mr Sanha's office announced "with pain and sadness" that he died at the Val-de-Grace military hospital in Paris where he had been receiving treatment.

He had frequently been hospitalised abroad since being elected Guinea-Bissau's leader. A French official told news agencies that the president had been in a coma prior to his death.

His profile

Mr Sanha was a veteran of Guinea-Bissau's independence war and had long-standing ties to the ruling party, the left-wing African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC).

He had previously served as interim president and had made two unsuccessful bids for the presidency, in 2000 and in 2005, before winning elections in July 2009.

He was married, with one child.

BBC/Cokey