Opposition candidate Jean Ping said two people had been killed and many injured after security forces launched an attack on his party’s headquarters.
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Gunfire could be heard across the city as plumes of smoke billowed from the torched parliament building as anti-government protesters clashed with heavily armed security forces leaving at least six people injured.
The protests and the fire prompted security forces to storm the opposition leader Jean Ping’s headquarters, according to the BBC.
Protesters entered the grounds of Gabon’s parliament building, the National Assembly, late in the afternoon.
Gabon’s electoral commission has begun to review the votes for Saturday’s presidential election before announcing provisional results, a day later than expected.
“They attacked around 01:00 (00:00 GMT)”.
According to Ping, they also fired live bullets, which he said killed three and wounded many.
“The election result must be perfectly clear and transparent”, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on RMC radio, adding that the election results should be published bureau by bureau.
Translation: My campaign headquarters is now under attack by the Republican Guard.
“This will help give the people of Gabon, as well as the worldwide community, confidence the announced vote tallies are accurate”, reports quoted US State Department spokesperson John Kirby as saying.
Gabon’s president has narrowly won re-election, election officials said Wednesday Aug. 31, 2016, keeping alive a family dynasty in this oil-rich Central African country that reaches back to the 1960’s. Mr Bongo took power in 2009 on the death of his father, who had ruled for 42 years.
Ping has urged Bongo to step down.
France, the United States and the European Union all urged calm and called upon Gabonese authorities to release the results of individual polling stations for greater transparency, while the UN also urged restraint. The US State Dept released a statement saying it is “deeply concerned” and called on the Gabonese government to release results from each polling station.
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U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for Gabon to remain peaceful in the aftermath of the hotly contested poll.
