President Ali Bongo Ondimba, son of Omar Bongo who ruled for more than 41 years, was toppled on August 30, 2023 by army officers following elections in which he vied for a third term in office. (Photo by AFP)
NAIROBI, Kenya - The African Union's Peace and Security Council said it was holding a meeting Thursday on the situation in Gabon, following the military coup there this week.
"Now -- AU Peace & Security Council meets to consider the situation in Gabon," the AU body said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter.
It said the meeting was being chaired by AU commissioner for political affairs Bankole Adeoye of Nigeria and the current holder of the council's rotating chair, Burundi's Willy Nyamitwe.
It gave no further information.
On Wednesday, the head of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, said he "strongly condemns" what he described as an attempted coup in the oil-rich central African state.
Rebel army officers announced Wednesday that they had seized power following disputed elections, in which President Ali Bongo Ondimba had been declared victor.
Faki had also called on the Gabonese army and security forces "to guarantee the physical integrity" of Bongo, who the coup leaders said had been placed under house arrest.