PRETORIA, August 30. /TASS/. Footage of rallies supporting the military who seized the reins of power in Gabon is being aired by local media outlets.

Residents in the capital city of Libreville as well as in Gabon’s second largest city Port-Gentil took to the streets, waving national flags and greeting soldiers on tanks. The people are chanting "Bravo!", "Long live the army!", "Gabon is free" and "Bongo, go away." In a video published by Gabon’s Info241 news portal on the X social media platform (formerly known as Twitter), the people are seen welcoming the military with applause.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Gabonese military announced that they had seized power in the Central African nation, dissolved all of the republic’s institutions and created the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions. The coup came almost immediately after Gabon's state election commission announced that the country's incumbent president, Ali Bongo Ondimba, had been re-elected for a third term with 64.2% of the vote. Earlier, the opposition claimed that the election was held with violations and refused to accept its results. There is no information on the current whereabouts of the Gabonese president. The Gabonese government has not yet issued any official statements.