Shots fired at a vehicle carrying Guinean President Lansana Contes were an assassination attempt, his security minister confirmed Thursday. Moussa Sampil told Radio France International (RFI) that there had been an attempt on Contes' life on Wednesday evening in the Guinean capital Conakry, but that the assailants had not hit their target. Following the incident, several people were detained and security around the presidential palace was tightened. RFI reported that Conakry was still shut down on Thursday morning. The president, who took power in a coup in 1984, won a third term in office in 2003 after he changed the constitution to allow him to stand again. --SP 1327 Local Time 1027 GMT
