Protest at Gabon vote

Gabon's opposition leader, Paul Mba Abessole, yesterday accused President Omar Bongo of staging an electoral coup, named a rival prime minister and called on the armed forces for backing, Reuter reports from Libreville.

The government responded to a day of angry protests, in which the opposition said troops shot dead one of its supporters, by imposing a nationwide overnight curfew. Fr Abessole, a Catholic priest, said that he and not Mr Bongo won Sunday's presidential election.