A group of soldiers sought to take power in Gabon on Monday while the country’s ailing president was abroad, but the government declared the bid had failed and the rebels had been arrested. Security forces have been deployed in the capital and will remain there over the coming days in order to maintain order, he said. ‘A difficult period’The 59-year-old Bongo has not been back to Gabon since he fell ill in Saudi Arabia on October 24. In his absence, the Constitutional Court transferred part of the powers of the president to the prime minister and the vice president. The African Union said it “strongly condemns” the coup attempt and reaffirmed its “total rejection of all unconstitutional change of power”.

Source: Egypt Independent January 07, 2019 11:26 UTC