Gabon police charge at protesters:

Security forces in Gabon violently charged at demonstrators gathering Saturday in Libreville in the lead-up to presidential elections and beat an AFP cameraman covering the protest, a colleague said.

Defying a heavy police presence, hundreds of protesters took to the streets in opposition to President Ali Bongo Ondimba’s candidacy for re-election on Aug 26, the AFP correspondent said.

Some 15 opposition leaders also attended the protest, forming a human chain at the front of the crowd. Among them was presidential candidate Guy Nzouba Ndama, the former parliamentary speaker.

The young protesters broke into song, chanting the national anthem as the security forces began firing tear gas at the crowd. (AFP)