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A group of senior Gabonese military officers appeared on television in the early hours of Wednesday to announce the suspension of elections and the closing of borders shortly after the election commission said President Ali Bongo had won a third term.
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- Appearing on the Gabon 24 television channel, the officers said they represented all the security and defence forces of the central African nation.
- The soldiers said election results that gave the incumbent Bongo a victory were annulled, all borders were closed until further notice and state institutions were dissolved.
- Gabon voted Saturday in presidential, parliamentary and legislative elections in which Bongo and Ondo Ossa led a race of 14 candidates vying for the top job.
9:27am: France following situation in Gabon very closely, says PM Borne
France is following the situation in Gabon very closely, said Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne on Wednesday, as she addressed a meeting of ambassadors in Paris.
Borne did not provide further details.
9:12am: Internet restored in Gabon three days after being cut
Internet connectivity was restored in Gabon on Wednesday three days after being cut as voting in the presidential, parliamentary and legislative elections drew to a close on Saturday evening.
Bongo’s government had imposed the nationwide internet shutdown on the grounds that it would prevent the spread of “false news” and possible violence.
Read moreGabon cuts internet as voting closes and opposition cries foul
8:57am: Events in Gabon could ‘increase instability’ in region, says EU’s Borrell
The European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the EU’s defence ministers would discuss the situation in Gabon, and that if it was confirmed that a coup d’état had taken place, it would lead to increased instability in the region.
“If this is confirmed, it is another military coup which increases instability in the whole region,” said Borrell, speaking at a meeting of EU defence ministers in Toledo.
“The whole area, starting with Central African Republic, then Mali, then Burkina Faso, now Niger, maybe Gabon, it’s in a very difficult situation and certainly the ministers … have to have a deep thought on what is going on there and how we can improve our policy in respect with these countries,” he said.
8:52am: French mining group Eramet says it has halted all operations in Gabon
French mining group Eramet, which has large manganese operations in Gabon, said on Wednesday that it had halted all operations in the country following overnight events, sending its shares down nearly 5 percent.
“From this morning all Comilog and Setrag operations have been halted and train transport suspended,” an Eramet spokesperson told Reuters.
8:30am: FRANCE 24 international affairs editor Philip Turle provides context and analysis as events unfold in Gabon
6:22am: Gunfire heard in the capital Libreville
Loud sounds of gunfire could be heard in Gabon’s capital Libreville, Reuters and AFP reporters said following the military officers’ television announcement.
Tensions had been running high and there were fears of unrest after Saturday’s vote, which saw Bongo seeking to extend his family’s 56-year grip on power while the opposition pushed for change in the oil- and cocoa-rich but poverty-stricken nation.
A lack of international observers, the suspension of some foreign broadcasts – including FRANCE 24 and sister radio station Radio France Internationale – and the authorities’ decision to cut internet service and impose a nationwide night-time curfew after the poll had raised concerns about the transparency of the electoral process.
There was no immediate comment from the government of the OPEC++ member nation.
6:18am: Soldiers announce dissolution of state institutions in TV address
Appearing on the Gabon 24 television channel, the officers said they represented all the security and defence forces of the central African nation. They said the election results were annulled, all borders closed until further notice and state institutions dissolved.
“In the name of the Gabonese people … we have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime,” the officers said.
One of the soldiers added that “all the institutions of the republic” had been dissolved.
“We have decided to defend peace by putting an end to the current regime,” one of the soldiers said, adding that he was speaking on behalf of the “Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions”.
“To this end, the general elections of 26 August 2023 and the truncated results are cancelled,” he said.
“All the institutions of the republic are dissolved: the government, the Senate, the National Assembly and the Constitutional Court,” he added, announcing the closure of the country’s borders “until further notice”.
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters, AFP and AP)
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