On January 15, 2026, intelligence agents from Gabon’s General Directorate of Counter-Interference and Military Security (DGCISM) detained journalist Roland Olouba Oyabi in the capital, Libreville, after inviting him to cover a fictitious event, the journalist told CPJ after his release.
The agents questioned Oyabi, publishing director of the privately owned online newspaper Gabon Mail Info, about his January 13 report about the alleged role of a Burkinabe businessman, described as close to Gabon’s President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, in acquiring helicopters for the Gabonese state. The report cited the Paris-based digital outlet Africa Intelligence as its source.
Oyabi told CPJ that the officers asked him about his sources and whether he had evidence to support the allegations, and he told them the information came from Africa Intelligence’s article.
On January 19, 2026, Oyabi was released without charge, after being brought before a prosecutor at a Libreville court.
CPJ's January 2026 calls to the DGCISM went unanswered.