Arnaud Zajtman (pictured above) and Marlene Rabaud, both France 24 journalists, are back in France, fit and well, after being detained for two days at the airport by authorities in Gabon.

The French team of Kinshasa-based correspondents had arrived Monday night at the main airport of the capital, Libreville. The journalists were carrying the appropriate visas but were not allowed to go through customs. Held in an international zone at the airport, they were never allowed to enter the country.

The detention followed criticism by the Gabonese government of the French media’s reporting on President Omar Bongo.

Bongo, Africa’s longest-serving ruler, is currently receiving medical treatment in a Spanish hospital. The Gabonese government says he is merely resting and having a check-up, but media reports say he is seriously ill.

On Saturday the Gabonese government accused FRANCE 24 and three other French broadcasters of reporting "non-official and alarmist" information on Bongo's state of health.