Mali: Justice sentences 46 Ivorian soldiers to 20 years in prison.

The case of the 46 Ivorian soldiers in Mali is gaining momentum. Charged in August for “attempting to undermine the external security of the state”, the Ivorian soldiers were sentenced to 20 years in prison on Friday 30 December, after two days of trial. According to some sources, Malian President Assimi Goïta could pardon them in the coming hours or days.

After two days of trial before the Bamako Assize Court, they were sentenced to 20 years in prison and a fine of 2 million CFA francs each for “attack and conspiracy against the government and undermining the external security of the state”, according to a statement by the Prosecutor General of Bamako.

The sentence is even heavier for the three women, released last September. The court sentenced them in absentia to the heaviest penalty: the death penalty and a 10 million fine each.

Indeed, the agreement reached between Mali and Côte d’Ivoire last week leaves open the possibility of a presidential pardon for the head of the Malian junta, Assimi Goïta, who is due to speak on Saturday 31 December, during his wishes to the Nation. Questioned by AFP, a source close to the Ivorian presidency said Friday evening that it did not wish to react.

As a reminder, on July 10, 49 Ivorian soldiers were arrested in Mali, then charged in mid-August with “attempting to undermine the external security of the state” and formally imprisoned. Three Ivorian women belonging to this group of soldiers were then released in mid-September following mediation. Bamako accuses the Ivorian soldiers of having travelled under false identities and with weapons without informing the authorities.

Miss OLY