Gabon's ousted president and family freed and fly to Angola
Gabon's former President, Ali Bongo, who was deposed in a 2023 coup, has left the country and is now in Angola, the authorities there have announced.
The Angolan presidency added in a statement posted on social media that Bongo's family had been released from detention and were with him in Luanda, News.Az reports, citing BBC.
Bongo's wife and son, Sylvia and Noureddin, faced corruption charges and had been imprisoned in 2023.
They have not yet publicly commented on the charges, however Mrs Bongo's lawyer has described her detention as arbitrary and illegal.
The family's release comes after Angolan President João Lourenço, who currently heads the African Union, visited Libreville and held talks with his Gabonese counterpart Brice Oligui Nguema - the former general who led the coup against Bongo before being winning a landslide in last month's presidential elections.
Gabonese prosecutor Eddy Minang says the release of Mrs Bongo and her son is merely provisional, owing to poor health and that legal proceedings against the two will continue.
In photos released by Angola's presidency, Bongo can be seen being greeted upon his arrival at the airport, with a woman who appears to be his wife behind him.
Ali Bongo, whose father Omar Bongo ruled Gabon for more than four decades, led the country for 14 years until the 2023 coup.
After his toppling he was placed under house arrest where he reportedly remained, although Gabonese authorities say he was free to move about as he wished.
His wife and son were detained in prison and then reportedly released to house arrest last week.
Sylvia and Noureddin Bongo both stand accused of embezzling public funds, with Mrs Bongo specifically facing charges of forgery, money laundering and falsifying documents.
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