UPDATE: Detained Gabon President calls for help, but crowds celebrate coup

Colombo (News 1st) - UPDATE: Deposed Gabon President Ali Bongo, 64, has in a post on social media called for "friends all over the world" to "make noise" against the military which staged a coup on Wednesday and placed him under house arrest, foreign media reported.

But crowds were seen celebrating on the streets of the capital, Libreville, the second largest city Port-Gentil, and several other towns following the coup.

The military has named the head of the presidential guard, General Brice Oligui Nguema, to head a transitional government.

Latest reports stated that the military has arrested several top government officials, including the President's eldest son who serves as one of the presidential advisors, on charges of treason, embezzlement, and corruption.

The governments of France, China, and Russia have expressed concern over the coup, which has so far been bloodless.

Military officers announced they had seized power in the oil-rich Central African nation of Gabon early Wednesday (30th), in an attempt to end the 57-year-old rule of the Bongo family, after President Ali Bongo Ondimba won a third term in an election the Opposition says was rigged.

Tensions have been running high in many parts of Africa in the past several months, with a civil war in Sudan and a military coup in Niger. It is the eighth military coup in West and Central Africa since 2020.

Gunfire was heard in the capital Libreville following the announcement on national television, but it was not clear what was happening. The military said they had annulled the recent election, dissolved all state institutions including the national assembly, and closed all borders.

"In the name of the Gabonese people … we have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime", the military announced.

There was no immediate news of the whereabouts of President Bongo or any announcements from the government. 

Results of last Saturday's election were delayed, Internet access was blocked, and a curfew was imposed before it was announced on Tuesday that the President had won a third term with 64% of the vote. Major French TV stations were also banned.

There have been several coups attempted by military officers since independence from France in 1960. But none have succeeded, mainly due to support from France which has sent in troops to support the civilian governments. Gabon's small army consists of only about 5,000 troops.

It is the latest former French colony where the military has seized power. Gabon is a nation of 2.3 million people, located on the Equator on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, and was ruled by first President Omar Bongo Ondimba from 1967 to 2009, and since then by President Ali Bongo Ondimba. It borders three states - Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, and the Republic of the Congo.

Gabon is a member of OPEC and with oil accounting for 43% of its GDP, it is one of the most prosperous states in Africa. However, its wealth distribution is skewed and a third of the population lives below the poverty line. Nearly 80% of the population are Catholic or Christian.

Although it is a former French colony and French remains its national language, Gabon in 2022 joined the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists almost solely of former British colonies.