 The carbonaires and guarantors of the protection of the institutions have decided to defend peace by putting an end to the regime in place. By putting an end to the current regime. To this end, general elections of the vain 10th of August of 1023 as well as the truncated results are cancelled. The borders are closed until further notice. All institutions of the republic are dissolved. A number of top Gabonese military officers emerged on national television, announcing that they have seized control, claiming that the previous general election was fraudulent and claiming to represent all of Gabon's security and defense forces. They claimed that the election results had been cancelled, that all borders had been blocked until further notice, and that state institutions had been abolished. During the televised appearance, Reuters reported hearing loud gunfire in the capital, Libreville. It was not immediately possible to reach the government for comment. In the name of the Gabonese people, we have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime, the officers said on television. Gibbon's incumbent president, Ali Bongo, won a third term in the presidential election with 64.27% of the vote. The Gabonese election center said on Wednesday after a delayed general election that the opposition denounced as fraudulent. Tensions were running high amid fears of unrest after Saturday's presidential, parliamentary and legislative vote, which saw Bongo seeking to extend his family's 56-year grip on power while the opposition pushed for change in the oil and cocoa rich but poverty-stricken nation. A lack of international observers, the suspension of some foreign broadcasts, and the authorities' decision to cut internet service and impose a nighttime curfew nationwide after the poll had raised concerns about the transparency of the electoral process. As one officer read the joint statement on television, around a dozen others stood silently behind him in military fatigues and barats. The group have declared themselves members of the Committee of Transition and the Restoration of Institutions. The state institutions they declared dissolved included the government, the Senate, the National Assembly, the Constitutional Court, and the election body. If successful, the coup would represent the 8th in West and Central Africa since 2020. Coups in Mali, Kenya, Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger have all undermined democratic progress. In July, the military snatched power in Niger, sending shockwaves across the Sahel and sucking in global powers with strategic interests at stake. Bongo, 64, who succeeded his father Omar as president in 2009, had 18 challengers, six of whom backed Ando Ossa in an effort to narrow the race. In 2016, the parliament building was torched when violent street protests erupted against Bongo's contested re-election for his second term. The government shut down internet access for several days at the time. Stay with us as we bring you the latest on the coup in Gabon. Don't forget to like and subscribe.