Sierra Leone\u2019s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Alhaji Timothy Musa Kabba, has credited Vice President, Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh, for the decisive diplomatic intervention that secured the release of 16 detained security personnel from Guinea on 27 February 2026.<\/p>\n
The soldiers had been arrested on 22 February in the Koudaya district of Guinea\u2019s Faranah Region, amid renewed tensions over the disputed Sierra Leone\u2013Guinea border. Guinean authorities claimed the troops crossed into their territory. Sierra Leone insisted its personnel were at Kalieyereh in Falaba District constructing a border post when Guinean forces crossed the frontier and detained them.<\/p>\n
The disagreement reflects a decades-old boundary issue, dating back to colonial demarcations. In the immediate aftermath, Freetown activated diplomatic and security channels rather than escalating militarily.<\/p>\n
Vice President Juldeh Jalloh, acting as Commander-in-Chief in the absence of President Dr Julius Maada Bio, who coincidentally is Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, constituted and mandated a high-level delegation to Conakry.<\/p>\n
Minister Kabba, who led the delegation to Conakry, met with Guinean Prime Minister, Amadou Oury Bah. Talks were firm but constructive. The result was the safe handover of the detained personnel.<\/p>\n
Speaking in Freetown during a dinner reception at the Vice President\u2019s residence, Tim Kabba described the intervention as \u201cdecisive and timely.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the incident happened, you showed remarkable courage and leadership,\u201d he told the Vice President. \u201cYou provided the inspiration. It is your instruction that we took to Conakry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vice President Juldeh Jalloh, who warmly welcomed the servicemen and women, praised their courage and emphasized that the two nations share deep cultural and family bonds. \u201cGuinea and Sierra Leone are two countries but one people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The episode reinforced Sierra Leone\u2019s commitment to peaceful resolution and high-level negotiation. It also demonstrated that regional leadership and diplomacy remain powerful tools in preventing escalation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sierra Leone\u2019s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Alhaji Timothy Musa Kabba, has credited…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6650,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n