Two dead in Gabon violence: family, witnesses
AFP
PORT-GENTIL- At least two people were killed and a building owned by French oil giant Total was on fire in Port-Gentil Friday as post-election violence hit Gabon's second city, relatives and witnesses told AFP.
"My brother Mbadinga Boulingui, 33, was hit by a bullet in the head yesterday (Thursday) around 4:00 pm in the La Balise district when he wanted to go home. He died today around 5:00 pm," his brother told AFP by telephone.
A national lawmaker from Port-Gentil confirmed the deaths to AFP.
Residents meanwhile said many shots were fired as police tried to stop looters and a sports and recreation centre for Total workers was on fire.
"We can hear shots but don't know if tear gas was shot or shots were fired from firearms but it sounds very violent," said a resident of the Chateau district where a police station was looted and burnt down in the afternoon.
Total's Roger Buttin centre in the south of Port-Gentil went up in flames as police cracked down on looters, two residents who could see the fire and a Frenchman who lives farther away told AFP.
None of them wanted to be identified.
Authorities have slapped an overnight curfew on Port-Gentil, making it impossible to get near the area.
Gangs of some 250 looters on Friday afternoon attacked shops in northern Port-Gentil.
The unrest came after Ali Bongo, son of the country's late strongman, was declared winner of a bitterly contested presidential poll.
Protesters torched the consulate of former colonial ruler France in Port-Gentil, the oil-rich country's economic hub, and attacked other French interests, including offices of oil firm Total on Thursday after Bongo's contested win was declared.
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