BITAM: At nightfall, frightened Muslim youths armed with sticks stand guard in the Gabonese town of Bitam, after a wave of post-election violence saw their community mosque and businesses targeted by protesters who accuse them of supporting President Ali Bongo.
Since Bongo claimed victory last week in a disputed election by a wafer-thin margin of less than 6,000 votes, many angry residents of the opposition bastion of Bitam in northern Gabon joined the riots that erupted nationwide. Here, they hurled stones and used Molotov cocktails to set fire to businesses owned by the minority Hausa community — an umbrella term used to describe the Muslim descendants of immigrant traders who moved to Gabon from neighbouring nations in the early 20th century.
Among the targets in the town, which is located near the Cameroon border, were the main food storehouse and a local food shop. Barring a few surviving columns, both have been reduced to ashes. Since Monday, shops in the town centre have been closed, with the curtains drawn.