KIGALI — Rwanda has handed over a Gabonese lawmaker to his government after he was arrested at Kigali International Airport over an alleged assault on a RwandAir supervisor.
Augustin Lobelle Yembi was arrested on September 3 while transiting through Kigali. He was accused of committing an act of violence against a RwandAir supervisor at the airport.
He was placed in police custody and was awaiting proceedings before Rwandan courts.
But after several days in custody, Rwanda authorised his departure on September 6 and handed him over to Gabonese authorities.
The case will now continue in Gabon.
Gabon’s National Assembly President, Michel Régis Onanga Ndiaye, announced the handover during a meeting of the parliamentary bureau at the Palais Léon Mba in Libreville.
He said the outcome followed diplomatic efforts between the two countries.
The Gabonese authorities attributed the decision to the close relationship between President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema and President Paul Kagame.
Gabon’s Foreign Minister, Marie-Édith Tassyla-Ye-Doumbeneny, also addressed the case on September 7.
She said Rwanda had authorised Yembi to leave because of the “excellence” of relations between the two countries and the friendship between their presidents.
The episode did not develop into a public diplomatic dispute.
Instead, the two governments opted for a diplomatic solution that moved the case from Rwanda to Gabon.
What happened at Kigali airport?
Details of the original altercation remain limited.
Gabonese authorities have confirmed that Yembi was accused of violence against a RwandAir supervisor.
Reports from Rwanda and Gabon have not provided a detailed account of what triggered the confrontation or whether the airline employee suffered injuries.
Video footage circulating online appears to show Yembi involved in a confrontation with a RwandAir employee, although the circumstances surrounding the incident remain unclear.
Yembi’s own account has not been widely reported.
Now facing justice in Gabon
Yembi is not returning to Gabon as a free man.
The latest reports from Libreville say he was placed in police custody after arriving in the country on Tuesday, September 8.
The case now falls under the jurisdiction of Gabonese authorities.
The National Assembly is also examining the implications of his parliamentary status.
Yembi was elected in 2025 as an independent representative for the Lolo-Bouenguidi department in Ogooué-Lolo province.
Gabonese parliamentary rules provide protections for lawmakers in criminal proceedings.
The National Assembly is awaiting a formal referral from judicial authorities before determining whether any action concerning his parliamentary immunity is required.
The case therefore remains open.
What has changed is where it will be handled.
A test for Rwanda-Gabon ties
The handover highlights the increasingly close relationship between Kigali and Libreville.
Gabon opened an embassy in Rwanda in 2024.
The two presidents have also maintained direct political contacts. They met in Kigali in May 2026 on the sidelines of the Africa CEO Forum.
Gabonese officials have repeatedly described relations with Rwanda as particularly strong.
That relationship provided the diplomatic channel through which the airport incident was resolved.
There is no indication that the case has damaged bilateral relations.
Instead, both governments have emphasised the strength of their ties.
The outcome also avoided an unusual situation in which a sitting African parliamentarian would have faced criminal proceedings in another African country over an incident involving a national airline.
For Rwanda, the decision means the alleged assault will no longer be prosecuted on its territory.
For Gabon, it means its own justice system must now determine what happens next.
The diplomatic intervention has therefore ended Yembi’s immediate legal exposure in Rwanda — but it has not ended the case.
He is now back in Gabon and in the hands of Gabonese authorities.
