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Gabon Election: Fire, Clashes Break out As President Declares Victory

Gabon Election: Fire, Clashes Break out As President Declares Victory
folder_openAfrica... access_time7 years ago
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Local Editor

Gabon's president has narrowly won re-election, keeping alive a family dynasty in the oil-rich Central African country that reaches back five decades.

Gabon Election: Fire, Clashes Break out As President Declares Victory

Clashes quickly broke out in the capital as opposition supporters claimed election fraud, looting and burning buildings.

President Ali Bongo Ondimba beat leading opposition candidate Jean Ping by just 1.57 percentage points, setting the stage for an almost certain challenge to the results.

Flames and smoke rose in the night sky from a large fire on a street in front of the National Assembly, according to residents nearby, who said that by late in the evening people had left the streets.

Demonstrators in several other districts vandalized a shopping mall, looted a bank and burned buildings, including one belonging to the vice prime minister, witnesses said.

Police had earlier fired tear gas at hundreds of opposition activists who converged near the Constitutional Court in the capital, Libreville, as army helicopters flew overhead.

Looting and clashes also followed Bongo's win in 2009, when he came to power after the death of his father, long-time ruler Omar Bongo.

The results came a day later than expected, prompting fears of a tainted process.

European Union observers criticized a "lack of transparency," and the EU called for the electoral commission to publish the results from all polling stations.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team

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