Egypt closely monitoring developments in Gabon after coup

Egypt said Wednesday it is closely monitoring developments in Gabon following a coup attempt against President Ali Bongo.

In a statement, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry called on all parties in Gabon “to uphold the national interest in order to preserve the security, stability and safety of the country.”

The ministry called on members of the Egyptian community in Gabon to exercise utmost caution and avoid areas of security tension.

“Egypt aspires to see stability returned to Gabon as soon as possible and preserve the safety of the brotherly Gabonese people,” it added.

Early Wednesday, a group of senior Gabonese army officers appeared on national television and announced that they had seized power.

The move came shortly after the Gabonese Election Center confirmed that Bongo officially won a third term as president with 64.27% of the votes.

Bongo has been in power for more than a decade.

Gabon is the latest country to witness a military coup, the third in three years in Africa, after Niger last month and Mali in 2022.

The staged coups sparked a wave of international condemnations, most of which expressed deep concern regarding the state of political instability in the continent.