Conakry, Guinea - A section of Guinea's military Tuesday launched an apparent coup just hours after the death of the West African nation's long-term President Lansana Conte was announced.

A statement read out on the radio said that both the government and the constitution were suspended.

Captain Moussa Dadis Camara said that a council of civilian and military leaders would be set up to replace the government as state institutions were "incapable of resolving the crises which have been confronting the country," the BBC reported.

National Assembly President Aboubacar Sompare announced Conte's death on state television in the early hours of Tuesday.

Sompare asked Guinea's Supreme Court to officially declare the presidency vacant, which would mean a presidential election must be organized within 60 days.

Sompare had been expected to be named interim president of the former French colony in line with the constitution. The military statement now throws this into doubt.

Camare said a military president would be named in the coming days.

However, Sompare said that the statement came from a small group of soldiers who did not represent the whole military.

"There is an attempted coup d'etat," Sompare told French TV station France 24. "I don't think all of the army are behind the mutineers...it's a group."

Prime Minister Ahmed Tidiane Souare also told French radio station RFI that his government was still in place and would remain there during the transitional period.

The streets of the capital Conakry were quiet and there were no troops visible, the BBC said.

French Foreign Minister Eric Chevallier said that it seemed like the legitimate authorities were in charge and called for a peaceful transition, news reports said.

Conte took control of Guinea in a bloodless coup in 1984 and kept a tight grip on the nation until his death.

He won three presidential elections since restoring civilian rule in 1993, after a referendum changed the constitution to remove a two- term limit.

In recent years, however, Conte has seen his leadership tested by a military mutiny, anti-government riots and strikes over the rising cost of food and fuel.

Conte did not groom a successor, and his death prompted fears that the military would make a move to fill the power vacuum.

The leader was known to suffer from diabetes and was a heavy smoker. His exact birthrate is not known, but he was believed to have been 74.

Rumours that his health had deteriorated had been circulating since last week, but officials denied these reports.

Guinea is still largely poverty-stricken despite having the world' largest reserves of bauxite, an ore used to make aluminum, and significant deposits of gold and diamonds. dpa