A Greek woman and her 13-year-old son are stranded in Gabon, whose borders were closed after the coup but are reopening.
"They say it's calm, but they didn't seem so calm to us. There were a lot of soldiers with guns, and later in the evening, various vehicles passed with guns behind them. We don't know when the hotel will have food," said Eva Spartali, speaking to ANT1, adding that there was a fear that they would be trapped.
Eva and her son had gone to Gabon for vacation and were supposed to return to Greece on Sunday, but all airports were closed, and all flights were cancelled. She stressed that what scared her the most was that they could not return to Greece.
"My son is 13, he starts school next week, and I'd like to be back for that," she said.
They return to Greece on Tuesday
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was immediately informed about the matter, and according to informed sources, they are returning on Tuesday.
"The embassy in Kinshasa (Congo) mobilised for the situation in Gabon and contacted the Greek woman. They are both in good health. They were supposed to travel on Sunday (3/9), but the flights were cancelled. I booked a return flight on September 5th. The borders have opened," explained the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"It worries me that there is an army in the city and everywhere," said 13-year-old Maximos.
The borders were opened again
A military spokesman said that Gabon reopened its borders on Saturday, September 2, three days after closing them during a military coup that ousted President Ali Bongo Ondimba.
Armed forces officers under General Brice Oligui Nguema seized power on Wednesday, placed Bongo under house arrest and installed Nguema as head of state, ending the Bongo family's 56-year rule of the country.
The coup, the eighth in West and Central Africa in three years, raised concerns that the military's seizure of power would spread across the region, erasing democratic progress over the past two decades. The coup's leaders are under pressure from the international community, which calls for restoring civilian governments.
Still, they said they would take their time to hold elections.
The land, sea and air borders were opened because the junta is "interested in maintaining respect for the rule of law, good relations with our neighbours and all states in the world" and wants to honour its "international commitments", its spokesman said—Army on state television.
Bongo was elected in 2009 after the death of his father, Omar, who came to power in 1967. Opponents say the family needs to do more to share Gabon's oil and mineral wealth.
The military takeover in Gabon follows coups in Guinea, Chad and Niger and two each in Mali and Burkina Faso since 2020, causing concern among global powers with strategic interests in the region.
