NIAMEY, July 26 (Aljazeera) - Niger’s presidency has said members of the presidential guard tried to move against President Mohamed Bazoum in an apparent coup attempt, warning that the army was ready to attack them if they did not back down.

The presidency’s official Twitter account said on Wednesday that presidential guards engaged in an “anti-Republican demonstration” and tried “in vain” to obtain the support of the other security forces.

It added that Bazoum and his family were well after news agencies quoted security sources as saying that the guards were holding Bazoum inside the presidential palace in the capital, Niamey.

The palace and ministries next to it had been blocked off by military vehicles on Wednesday morning. Staff inside the palace were also unable to access their offices, according to reports.

Bazoum supporters tried to approach the presidential complex but were dispersed by members of the presidential guard who fired warning shots, according to an AFP reporter.

One person was hurt, but it was not immediately clear if he was injured by a bullet or from falling as the crowd scattered. Al Jazeera, however, could not independently verify the incident.

But there was calm elsewhere in Niamey.

Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris, reporting from Abuja in neighbouring Nigeria, said there was a directive from the army for troops loyal to Bazoum to move in to quell what seemed to be a coup attempt.

He said there were reports from the Nigerien capital signifying that there was “some form of negotiations”, with one report suggesting that the coup plotters wanted Bazoum to “surrender power”.

“Right now, we also heard about mobilisation in the outskirts of Niamey where military barracks are situated,” he added.

In a statement, Moussa Faki Mahamat, chairperson of the African Union Commission, “strongly” condemned what he called a coup attempt “by members of the military acting in total betrayal of their republican duty”.

West Africa’s 15-nation regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) called for Bazoum’s immediate and unconditional release, warning that all those involved would be held responsible for his safety.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned any effort to seize power by force in Niger and called on all actors to exercise restraint.

The UN chief spoke later on Wednesday with President Bazoum and offered his “full support” to the leader who has apparently been detained in a coup attempt, a UN spokesman said.