Ex-first lady Sylvia Bongo, son 'won't return to Gabon' for trial, their lawyers say

Gabon's former first lady and the son of the country's deposed leader Ali Bongo Ondimba will not return to Libreville to face trial for embezzlement of public funds, their French lawyer said on Wednesday.

Sylvia Bongo and her son Noureddin are on conditional bail in London following the August 2023 coup that toppled the Bongo family which had ruled the oil-rich country for over half a century.

The pair are scheduled to go on trial in the Gabonese capital on November 10.

But their lawyers, led by Pierre-Olivier Sur, said that was "procedurally unrealistic", partly because neither of the defendants had formally received a summons at their London address.

Rather, they said they "learned through the press" about the trial dates.