(C) Common Dreams
This story was originally published by Common Dreams and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .



Military Officers Seize Power in Gabon, Threatening an African Dynasty [1]

['Declan Walsh', 'More About Declan Walsh']

Date: 2023-08-30

Military officers said they had seized power in the oil-rich Central African nation of Gabon early on Wednesday, overturning the results of a disputed election that returned the incumbent, President Ali Bongo Ondimba, to a third term in office.

If it succeeds, the coup in Gabon would be the latest in an extraordinary run of military takeovers across a swath of Africa — at least nine in the past three years, including one last month in Niger, where President Mohamed Bazoum was similarly overthrown by the head of his presidential guard.

Mr. Bongo, detained inside his residence, issued a video plea for help. But celebrations erupted in the streets outside, as many Gabonese cheered the apparent demise of a family dynasty that has dominated for a half-century.

By evening, the officers announced Gen. Brice Oligui Nguema, head of the elite Republican Guard that is charged with protecting Mr. Bongo, as Gabon’s new leader. Gabonese media identified him as a cousin of the ousted leader.

[END]
---
[1] Url: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/30/world/africa/gabon-coup-election.html

Published and (C) by Common Dreams
Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 3.0..

via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/commondreams/

You are viewing proxied material from magical.fish. The copyright of proxied material belongs to its original authors. Any comments or complaints in relation to proxied material should be directed to the original authors of the content concerned. Please see the disclaimer for more details.