DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Explainer: What do we know about the Gabon military coup?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The opposition had denounced the Aug. 26 vote as fraudulent, which Bongo's campaign denied. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsWHO IS ALI BONGO AND WHY WAS HE OUSTED? If successful, the Gabon coup would end the Bongo family's 56-year grip on power. It remains unclear how long the transition promised by the military would be or what exactly the officers are planning. Military officers have also seized power in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Chad, and most recently in Niger, erasing democratic gains since the 1990s.

Persons: Gerauds Wilfried Obangome, Ali Bongo's, Bongo, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, Ali Bongo, Omar Bongo, Brice Oligui Nguema, Anait, Alessandra Prentice, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: REUTERS, Military, Central African, Gabonese, Reuters Graphics Reuters, WHO, ALI, Monde, Thomson Locations: Libreville, Gabon, GABON, autocrats, Morocco, West, Central Africa, Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger, Gabonese

CNN —A group of military officers claiming to represent “defense and security forces” in Gabon announced on Wednesday they had seized power in the African nation, according to a televised address circulating on social media. In the broadcast, the military officer said the election results would be voided and the country’s borders would be closed until further notice. Bongo’s long ruleEarlier on Wednesday, Gabon’s election body said Bongo had won the presidential election with 64.27% of the vote, after a delay-plagued general election that the opposition denounced as fraudulent. The elder Bongo came into power in 1967, seven years after the country’s independence from France. Ahead of the election, the non-profit Reporters Without Borders condemned the Gabonese government for obstructing foreign press coverage of the event.

Persons: ”, Ali Bongo, “, Bongo, Albert Ondo Ossa, Omar Bongo, Ondo, Bongo’s Organizations: CNN, Gabon24, Twitter, Senate, National Assembly, Constitutional, Economic, Social, Environmental Council, Reuters, Union, Borders, United Nations, Gabonese Locations: Gabon, Gabonese, Libreville, West, Central Africa, Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger, Ondo, France

☆ Gabon army officers say they have seized power after election in oil-rich country
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Gerauds Wilfried Obangome | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The officers said on television channel Gabon 24 that they represented all Gabonese security and defence forces. They said the election results were cancelled, all borders were closed until further notice and state institutions were dissolved. Military officers have also seized power in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Chad. "If this is confirmed, it is another military coup which increases instability in the whole region," said the European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. Bongo, 64, succeeded his father Omar as president in 2009 and was re-elected in a disputed election in 2016.

Persons: Ali Bongo Ondimba's, Ali Bongo, Bongo, Elisabeth Borne, insurgencies, Josep Borrell, Albert Ondo Ossa, Omar, Eramet, Alessandra Prentice, Sofia Christensen, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Nellie Peyton, Simon Cameron, Moore, Edmund Blair Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS Acquire, Central African, OPEC, French, Military, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Gabonese, Centre, Wednesday, Thomson Locations: Gabonese, Gabon, Handout, LIBREVILLE, Libreville, France, West, Central Africa, Niger, Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad . Niger

☆ Analysis: With Gabon, Africa's coup wave shows little sign of stopping
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Edward Mcallister | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

If successful, Wednesday's coup in Gabon would be the eighth in West and Central Africa in three years. Widespread condemnation, or the threat of military intervention, have done little to unseat coup leaders in Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Niger and Chad since 2020. Minutes before the coup announcement, Gabon's election authority declared him the emphatic victor of Saturday's election. I am calling on you to make noise, to make noise, to make noise. The triggers for the Gabon coup were different to those in the Sahel countries further north, where insecurity caused by Islamist militants has done much to sway public opinion.

Persons: Ali Bongo, Bongo, Gabon's, Maja Bovcon, Verisk, Omar, Mohamed Bazoum, Paul Biya, Denis Sassou Nguesso, Ryan Cummings, Edward McAllister, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: REUTERS, REUTERS Acquire, London, African Union, Thomson Locations: Gabon, DAKAR, West, Central Africa, Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Niger, Chad, Africa, United States, France, Cameroon, Congo Republic, South Africa

☆ Who is Brice Oligui Nguema, the general named as Gabon's transition leader?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Aug 30 (Reuters) - Gabon's military junta named General Brice Oligui Nguema as transition leader on Wednesday, following the apparent ouster of President Ali Bongo. The elite force is in charge of protecting the president, his family and other high-profile figures. ANTICORRUPTION MANDATEShortly after he took on the new role in 2019, Nguema launched an operation named "clean hands" to crack down on alleged state-led embezzlement. The Bongo family has ruled oil-rich Gabon for over half a century. In an interview with French newspaper Le Monde on Wednesday, Nguema said people in Gabon were frustrated with their government.

Persons: General Brice Oligui Nguema, Ali Bongo, Bongo, Nguema, Gerauds Wilfried Obangome, Ingrid Melander, Anait, Sofia Christensen, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Republican Guard, Thomson Locations: Gabon's southeasternmost, Haut, Republic of Congo, United States, Gabon, Libreville, Paris, Johannesburg

☆ Gabon Military Officers Say They Are Seizing Power
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Declan Walsh | More About Declan Walsh | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A group of senior military officers appeared on television in the oil-rich Central African nation of Gabon early Wednesday and announced they were seizing power, hours after the incumbent president, Ali Bongo Ondimba, was declared to have won a third term in office. There was no immediate reaction from Mr. Bongo or the government. Bursts of gunfire could be heard in the capital, Libreville, shortly after the broadcast ended, Reuters reported. “We have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime,” one of the officers said on the Gabon 24 station. If it succeeds, the coup would be the latest in an extraordinary run of military takeovers in Western and Central Africa — at least nine in the past three years, including one in Niger last month.

Persons: Ali Bongo Ondimba, Bongo Organizations: Reuters, Central Africa — Locations: Gabon, Libreville, Western, Central, Niger

☆ Reaction to Gabon army officers announcing coup
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Below are reactions to what appeared to be the eighth military coup in West and Central Africa since 2020. FRENCH GOVERNMENT SPOKESPERSON OLIVIER VERAN"We condemn the military coup and recall our commitment to free and transparent elections." EU HIGH REPRESENTATIVE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND SECURITY POLICY JOSEP BORRELL"If this is confirmed, it is another military coup which increases instability in the whole region. RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESPERSON MARIA ZAKHAROVA"Moscow has received with concern reports of a sharp deterioration in the internal situation in the friendly African country. U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTONIO GUTERRES"The Secretary-General is following the evolving situation in Gabon very closely.

Persons: Gerauds Wilfried Obangome, Ali Bongo, Moussa Faki Mahamat, BOLA TINUBU'S, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GENERAL PATRICIA SCOTLAND, OLIVIER VERAN, WANG WENBIN, Bongo, JOSEP BORRELL, MARIA ZAKHAROVA, JOHN KIRBY, It's, GENERAL ANTONIO GUTERRES, Nellie Peyton, Sofia Christensen, Alexander Winning, Sharon Singleton, Andy Sullivan Organizations: REUTERS, Central African, AU, H.E, WEST, BLOC ECOWAS, GENERAL, Commonwealth Secretariat, MINISTRY, EU HIGH, Thomson Locations: Libreville, Gabon, West, Central Africa, Gabonese Republic, Republic, NIGERIA, African Union, CHINA, China, Central African Republic, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Moscow

☆ Gabon's president appeals for help after coup
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsGabon's president appeals for help after coupPostedGabon's President Ali Bongo urged friends "all over the world" to "make noise" after military officers said they had seized power and placed him under house arrest. David Doyle has more.

Persons: Ali Bongo, David Doyle

☆ Army convoy cheered after Gabon coup declaration
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsArmy convoy cheered after Gabon coup declarationPostedMilitary officers in oil-producing Gabon said they had seized power on Wednesday (August 30), after the Central African state's election body announced that President Ali Bongo had won a third term.

Persons: Ali Bongo Organizations: Army, Central African Locations: Gabon

☆ Gabonese military officers announce they have seized power
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A group of senior Gabonese military officers appeared on national television in the early hours of Wednesday and said they had taken power, minutes after the state election body announced President Ali Bongo had won a third term. Appearing on television channel Gabon 24, the officers said they represented all security and defense forces in the Central African nation. Loud sounds of gunfire could be heard in the capital Libreville, a Reuters reporter said, after the television appearance. "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. As one officer read the joint statement, around a dozen others stood silently behind him in military fatigues and berets.

Persons: Ali Bongo Organizations: Gabonese, OPEC Locations: Gabon, Central African, Libreville, Gabonese

☆ Gabon dollar-denominated bonds slide after military says it seized power
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON/Johannesburg, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Gabon's dollar-denominated bonds fell by more than 13 cents on Wednesday after the military said it had seized power in the west African nation, according to Tradeweb data. The 2025 maturity fell the most, by 13.238 cents on the dollar to 79.673 cents at 0724 GMT. A group of senior military officers in Gabon claimed to have seized power in the early hours of Wednesday, minutes after the Central African state's election body announced that President Ali Bongo had won a third term. Gabon completed a $436 million "debt for nature" swap earlier this month, where it exchanged parts of the 2025 and 2031 Eurobonds for a "blue bond" maturing in 2038. Reporting By Libby George and Rachel Savage; Editing by Amanda Cooper and Conor HumphriesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ali Bongo, Libby George, Rachel Savage, Amanda Cooper, Conor Humphries Organizations: Central African, U.S . Development Finance Corporation, Thomson Locations: Johannesburg, Gabon

☆ Situation in Gabon, West Africa a big issue for Europe - EU's Borrell
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell delivers a speech during a ceremony opening EU's Partnership Mission in Chisinau, Moldova, May 31, 2023. "If this is confirmed, it is another military coup which increases instability in the whole region," said Borrell, speaking at a meeting of EU defence ministers in Toledo. "This is a big issue for Europe," he added. The signs of a coup in Gabon come just weeks after members of the presidential guard in Niger seized power and established a junta. Reporting by Andrew Gray, Sabine Siebold, Benoit Van Overstraeten; Writing by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Conor HumphriesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Josep Borrell, Vladislav Culiomza, Ali Bongo, Andrew Gray, Sabine Siebold, Benoit Van Overstraeten, Sudip Kar, Conor Humphries Organizations: European Union for Foreign Affairs, REUTERS, Rights, Union, Gabonese, Central African, Thomson Locations: Chisinau, Moldova, Rights TOLEDO, Spain, Gabon, Toledo, Central African Republic, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, it's, Europe

☆ Recent coups in West and Central Africa
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

BURKINA FASOIn January 2022, Burkina Faso's army ousted President Roch Kabore, blaming him for failing to contain violence by Islamist militants. Doumbouya became interim president and promised a transition to democratic elections within three years. CHADIn April 2021, Chad's army took power after President Idriss Deby was killed on the battlefield while visiting troops fighting rebels in the north. Deby's son, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, was named interim president and tasked with overseeing an 18-month transition to elections. But the coup leaders clashed with the interim president, retired colonel Bah Ndaw, and engineered a second coup in May 2021.

Persons: Gerauds Wilfried Obangome, Ali Bongo, Mohamed Bazoum, Abdourahamane Tiani, Burkina Faso's, Roch Kabore, Colonel Paul, Henri Damiba, Captain Ibrahim Traore, Mamady Doumbouya, Alpha Conde, Conde, Doumbouya, Idriss Deby, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, Assimi Goita, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, Bah Ndaw, Goita, Hereward Organizations: REUTERS, Islamic, West, ECOWAS, Chadian, Mali's West, Thomson Locations: Libreville, Gabon, West, Central Africa, NIGER, Niger, al Qaeda, Islamic State, Mali, Burkina, BURKINA FASO, GUINEA, CHAD, N'Djamena, MALI

☆ Gabon to vote as president Bongo seeks to extend 56-year family dynasty
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( Gerauds Wilfried Obangome | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Gabon's President Ali Bongo Ondimba addresses the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. Headquarters in New York City, U.S., September 21, 2022. These include the introduction of a single ballot that requires voters to pick a presidential candidate and lawmaker from the same party. Bongo's camp has positioned him as the firm favourite to win the race, although there has been no reliable polling. His main threat comes from joint opposition candidate Albert Ondo Ossa, 69, an economics and management professor who has campaigned on the need for change and better economic opportunities. I am convinced that this year there will be changeover in Gabon", said pensioner Alain Moussavou at the opposition rally.

Persons: Ali Bongo Ondimba, Brendan McDermid, Ali Bongo's, Bongo, Remadji Hoinathy, Hoinathy, Albert Ondo Ossa, Alain Moussavou, Alessandra Prentice, David Gregorio Our Organizations: United Nations General Assembly, REUTERS, Rights, Security Studies, Ondo, Thomson Locations: U.N, New York City, U.S, Rights LIBREVILLE, Africa, Bongo, Libreville, Gabon

☆ Gabon Joins Blue Bond Wave With $500 Million Debt Refinancing
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Will Horner | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Gabon completed mainland Africa’s first-ever “debt-for-nature swap” Tuesday, refinancing $500 million of its debt and earmarking $163 million in savings for marine conservation, the latest in a burgeoning list of “blue bond” deals. In their place, Gabon issued a $500 million blue bond which matures in 2038. The coupon on the new blue bond was priced at 6.097%, lower than the coupons on the repaid bonds which were between 6.625%-7%. TNC says its blue bond deals have provided $400 million toward conservation efforts. Bank of America, which served as sole initial purchaser, structuring agent and bookrunner on the Gabon deal, declined to reveal its transaction fees.

Persons: Gabon’s, Bond, ”, Ali Bongo Ondimba, TNC wasn’t, Scott Nathan, TNC, Will Horner Organizations: —, Sustainable Business, Moody’s Investors Service, U.S . International Development Finance Corporation, Conservancy, Greenpeace, Bank of America Locations: Gabon, Africa, U.S, Belize, Seychelles, Barbados, Ecuador, Galápagos, william.horner

☆ Gabon President Bongo to run for re-election in August
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LIBREVILLE, July 9 (Reuters) - Gabon President Ali Bongo will run for re-election in August, he said on Sunday, in a bid to extend his family's 56-year grip on power in the Central African country. "Because nothing matters more than your success, I am announcing today that I am a candidate", Bongo told a small crowd of cheering supporters. Bongo, 64, has been president of the oil-producing nation for two seven-year terms since succeeding his father Omar, who died in 2009 after ruling since 1967. Bongo's re-election bid was thrown into doubt when he suffered a stroke in October 2018 and was flown to Morocco for medical treatment. Reporting by Gerauds Wilfried Obangome; Writing by Edward McAllister; Editing by Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ali Bongo, Bongo, Omar, Bongo's, Gerauds Wilfried Obangome, Edward McAllister, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Thomson Locations: LIBREVILLE, Gabon, Central, Morocco

☆ This man set up a removals business with a mini Kei truck that cost just $4,500 – but a new mirror and wiper set him back $600
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A Kei truck owner plans to give up his mini pickup as it's too hard and costly to find spare parts. Craig Disbrow's modified Kei truck without covers on the back. He estimates he spent another $3,000 turning it into a mini removal van. It's been enough to make Disbrow begrudgingly plan to give up the Kei truck and find something more common, he said. Do you own a Kei truck and have had problems too?

Persons: Craig Disbrow, Bongo, Kei, he'd, Disbrow, Craig Disbrow's, they're, didn't, It's Organizations: Morning Locations: New York City, North Carolina, New York, America

☆ This New Yorker says he loves his mini Kei truck, but plans to give it up because finding spare parts is so hard
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A Kei truck owner plans to give up his mini pickup as it's too hard and costly to find spare parts. He said he fell in love with the mini Japanese "Kei" truck, but the unexpectedly high costs of replacing broken parts means he's reluctantly planning to give it up. Disbrow's modified Kei truck without covers on the back. He estimates he spent another $3,000 turning it into a mini removal van. It's been enough to make Disbrow begrudgingly plan to give up the Kei truck and find something more common, he said.

Persons: Craig Disbrow, Bongo, Kei, he'd, Disbrow, they're, didn't, It's Organizations: Morning Locations: New York City, North Carolina, New York, America

☆ The world’s largest city is a futuristic paradise. But some things stay stuck in the past
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Richard Quest | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Tokyo CNN —It’s the biggest city in the world, a vast metropolitan area that’s home to more than 37 million people. Onigiri – savory rice balls wrapped in nori or seaweed – have been a comfort food staple for thousands of years. Known as “The Monk In Heels,” Nishimura juggles his life as a monk with his work as a makeup artist. Origami, too, remains a powerful, soothing way to use such skills and step away from the fast-paced world of the modern city. He is the face of a timeless, sedate Tokyo, an antidote to the hectic way things often feel here.

Persons: Tokyo CNN —, Ukon, Onigiri Bongo, ”, Salmon, It’s, Yumiko, CNN's Richard Quest, Takefumi Hamada, chef, Hamada, you’re, ‘, Kodo Nishimura, ” Nishimura juggles, Nishimura, “, ’, Kazuo Kobayashi Organizations: Tokyo CNN, Michelin, CNN, Netflix, Disney Locations: Tokyo, Akihabara, Japan, Tokyoites, CNN Tokyo, Shibuya, Shinjuku

☆ Gabon's foreign minister dies of heart attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Gabonese Foreign Minister Michael Moussa Adamo poses for a picture during a Reuters interview at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kigali, Rwanda June 24, 2022. REUTERS/Ayenat Mersie/File PhotoLIBREVILLE, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Gabon's Foreign Minister Michael Moussa Adamo died on Friday of a heart attack, President Ali Bongo said in a statement. Three government sources said that he was in a council of ministers meeting when he suffered the cardiac attack. He was rushed to the hospital and died shortly after midday despite specialist treatment, said a government statement. Reporting by Gerauds Wilfried Obangome Writing by Nellie Peyton Editing by Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Radio DJ Art Laboe, who helped desegregate music venues and celebrated 'oldies but goodies,' dies at 97
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Dennis-Romero-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Dennis Romero | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Radio DJ Art Laboe, who interviewed Elvis for radio in the 1950s before helping make Black music and Latino youths lifelong friends, has died. The DJ, who hosted a show on Los Angeles radio station KDAY, died Friday of pneumonia, according to a statement on his Facebook page. The final show from Laboe, who is credited with coining the phrase "oldies but goodies," was broadcast Sunday. "Art Laboe's legacy will endure as his team will continue to produce his current nightly request and dedication syndicated radio show, 'The Art Laboe Connection,'" the post said. In the mid-1950s, Laboe was the top daytime radio DJ in Los Angeles.

☆ Factbox: World leaders to attend Queen Elizabeth's funeral
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Canadian Prime minister Justin Trudeau and Sophie Gregoire Trudeau attend the funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Abbey. Jack Hill/Pool via REUTERSRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterLONDON, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Queen Elizabeth's state funeral will take place in London on Monday and a host of world leaders, royalty and other dignitaries will attend. Countries that have not been invited include Syria and Venezuela because London does not have normal diplomatic relations with those states. Britain has also not invited representatives from Russia, Belarus or Myanmar after it imposed economic sanctions on those countries. Related ContentFactbox: Plans for Queen Elizabeth's state funeral on MondayFactbox: Comments from crowds in London on Queen ElizabethFactbox: World leaders to attend Queen Elizabeth's funeralFactbox: Order of service for Queen Elizabeth's state funeralWindsor Castle, Queen Elizabeth's home and now final resting placeWestminster Abbey - traditional church for royals in life and death(This story was refiled to correct spelling of first name of Belize governor general)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterCompiled by Farouq Suleiman and Kate Holton Editing by Deepa Babington and Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Search resuls for: "Bongo"

22 mentions found