Gabon: Former President Bongo and family leave for Angola

Former Gabon president Ali Bongo, who was ousted in a 2023 coup, has left the country for Angola accompanied by his wife and son, Angola’s presidency announced in a Facebook statement.

The departure follows last week’s transfer of Sylvia Bongo, 62, and Noureddin Bongo, 33, from prison to house arrest. Both had been in custody since the August 2023 coup and face accusations including embezzlement and money laundering.

According to two sources familiar with the situation, the family departed Gabon before midnight on Thursday. Ali Bongo, 66, had initially been placed under house arrest following the coup, though officials later claimed he was free to move as he wished—a statement his supporters disputed.

Prior to their transfer to house arrest on May 9, Sylvia and Noureddin Bongo were reportedly held in basement cells within Libreville’s presidential palace. Their supporters have alleged torture during detention, claims that coup leader and current President Brice Oligui Nguema denied.

The African Union’s Peace and Security Council had called for the immediate release of Bongo’s family during an April 30 meeting, where Gabon’s membership—suspended after the coup—was reinstated. The council specifically demanded guarantees that the family’s rights and health would be protected.

Brice Oligui Nguema, who led the coup that ended the Bongo family’s decades-long rule, was sworn in this month for a seven-year presidential term after securing nearly 95% of the vote in the presidential election. The Bongo dynasty had governed Gabon since 1967, with Ali assuming office in 2009 following his father’s death after more than 40 years in power.