After Ali Bongo is elected for a third term, a coup occurs in Gabon.

 

A group of senior Gabonese military troops appeared on national television early on Wednesday and claimed to have taken over just minutes after the official electoral authority announced President Ali Bongo had won a third term.

When the officers appeared on the television network Gabon 24, they claimed to speak for the entire nation's security and military forces.

They asserted that all borders had been permanently closed, all governmental institutions had been abolished, and the election results had been thrown out.

A Reuters correspondent reported hearing gunfire after the broadcast appearance in the nation's capital, Libreville.

The government of the OPEC member state did not immediately respond.

It was not immediately known Bongo's location; he was last seen in public on Saturday while casting his vote.

In a statement they released, the officers stated that they had "decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime" on behalf of the Gabonese people.

Behind the officer reading the joint statement, a dozen officers wearing berets and military fatigues stood still.

The troops described themselves as being a part of The Committee of Transition and the Restoration of Institutions.

They dissolved a number of state institutions, including the government, senate, national assembly, constitutional court, and electoral body.

The coup would be the seventh to occur in West and Central Africa since 2020 if it is successful.

Recent progress in democracy have been delayed by coups in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad, and Niger, among other places.

Last month, the military overthrew the government in Niger, startling the Sahel and luring in international nations with conflicting geopolitical interests.

Tensions were high and there were concerns of unrest following the presidential, parliamentary, and legislative elections held on Saturday. Bongo sought to keep his family's 56-year hold on power as the opposition battled for change in the oil- and cocoa-rich but impoverished country.

The lack of foreign observers, the suspension of some foreign broadcasts, the decision by the authorities to cut down internet connectivity and impose a midnight curfew following the poll all raised questions about the integrity of the election.

Gabon stopped a military coup attempt in January 2019 when troops briefly took over the state radio station and declared President Bongo, who had suffered a stroke months earlier, was no longer eligible to serve in government.

Hours later, the situation was resolved after two of the accused coup plotters were killed and further suspects were brought into prison.

According to the Gabonese Election Centre, which released the results earlier on Wednesday, Albert Ondo Ossa, Bongo's main rival, came in second place with 30.77% of the vote.

In an effort to make the election more competitive, six of the 18 opponents of 64-year-old Bongo, who succeeded his father Omar as president in 2009, backed Ondo Ossa.

According to the administration, the web blackout and curfew are necessary to protect the public's safety and halt the spread of false information.

Violent protests that broke out after Bongo's disputed election victory in 2016 resulted in the parliament building being set on fire.

Ondo Ossa and his opposition alliance have denied allegations of fraud made by his team after a vote disrupted by multiple polling places opening several hours late. Additionally, the alliance Alternans 2023 claimed that ballots for its candidates had not been distributed properly in several locations, among other purported anomalies. Reuters was unable to independently confirm the assertion. This election was not open to observers from the European Union.