Gabon Junta Tightens Grip as EU Opposes Military Intervention
- General says president’s ill health, flawed vote prompted coup
- Gabon coup very different from one in Niger, EU official says
A woman embraces a soldier of the Republican Guard in front of the presidency, on Aug. 30.
Photographer: Desirey Minkoh/AfrikImages Agency/Universal Images/Getty Images
This article is for subscribers only.
Gabon’s new military leader sought to justify a takeover of the oil-rich nation even as a top European Union official cautioned against using force to restore civilian rule.
Hours after seizing power in the Central African nation, the junta appointed General Brice Nguema — a cousin of ousted President Ali Bongo — as transitional head. Nguema said the decision to remove Bongo was motivated by the president’s ill health, along with what he described as a flawed Aug. 26 election that secured him another term.