Military officers in Gabon say they have taken power and put the president, Ali Bongo Ondimba, under house arrest, as the country becomes the latest in Africa to suffer an attempted coup, only weeks after mutinous troops seized power in Niger.
A group of military personnel appeared on state television to announce they were seizing power to overturn the results of a presidential election, seeking to remove a president whose family has held power for nearly 56 years. The officers introduced themselves as members of the Committee of Transition and the Restoration of Institutions.
If successful, the coup would be the eighth in west and central Africa since 2020. The most recent one, in Niger, was in July, while the military has also seized power in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Chad.
The officers said they represented all Gabonese security and defence forces and announced the election results were cancelled, all borders were closed until further notice and state institutions dissolved.
“Today the country is undergoing a severe institutional, political, economic, and social crisis,” the officers said in a statement, saying the 26 August election lacked transparency and credibility. “In the name of the Gabonese people … we have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime.”
The coup attempt came hours after Bongo, 64, was declared winner of an election marred by fears of violence. He was last seen in public casting his vote on Saturday.
