release

Five days after the release of Soumaïla Cissé, Sophie Pétronin and two Italian hostages of the Islamist and Muslim support group linked to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, in exchange for jihadist fighters, there are still many questions surrounding this exchange. We know a little more every day about released jihadists in return for the four hostages. We now know their number. Having long cautiously claimed that there were several dozen, we now know with certainty that they were more than 200. Two hundred and six is…

UN human rights experts are calling for the release of the main opposition leader Maurice Kamto and those arrested during protests organized by the opposition last month. In a press release, UN experts call on Yaoundé to release the president of Cameroon's Renaissance movement, Maurice Kamto, blocked in his home since Sept. 22. Officially, he is not the subject of any arrest warrant or house arrest, but according to his lawyers, he cannot leave his home. His residence is surrounded by hundreds of elements from the…

The recent release of hostages in Mali raises hopes that more hostages will be released. Several Malians and six Westerners are still in the hands of the jihadists in the Sahel. Among them is the Colombian nun Gloria Cecilia Argoti, known as "Sister Gloria". The Colombian nun was abducted on February 7, 2017 in Karangasso, in the Sikasso region of southern Mali. She then appears in two videos, including one with French-Swiss Sophie Pétronin, who was released Thursday night. That was in September 2018. Since then, there is…

The release on Thursday night of the four hostages in Mali, Soumaïla Cissé, Sophie Pétronin and the two Italians, Nicola Chiacchio and father Pier Luigi Maccalli, came after long and difficult negotiations with a long uncertain outcome. A ransom would have been paid and many jihadists were released by the Malian authorities. A look back at what we know about the negotiations and the compensation required. with our correspondent in Bamako, On April 5, a few days after the kidnapping of Soumaïla Cissé, the then Prime…

Several hostages in the hands of jihadists were released on Thursday. Among them the leader of the Malian opposition. Soumaïla Cissé was kidnapped in March 2020 in the north of the country while fighting for the legislative election. And that is the relief in Mali after his release. as reported from Bamako For Soumaïla Cissé, it's a first day of freedom. The leader of the Malian opposition has returned home since Wednesday night after more than six months in captivity. "Physically, I have no problem. I feel good.…

This release comes less than two months after the CNSP's military coup, the junta that brought down President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta. Yet it was under the old regime that the negotiations were actively launched, but the moment of effective liberation necessarily favors the current strong men in Mali. The release of Soumaïla Cissé in Mali had become a national, transpartisan, unifying cause. While this is clearly not the primary goal, the associated political gain is indisputable. But to whom can this success be…

"The good news finally fell yesterday", poster in large letters on the front of L'Indépendant, the Malian daily. "Soumaïla Cissé and other Western hostages, including the French Sophie Petronin, are free," we read."It is now confirmed and official," the article insists. "After more than six months in captivity or more than 190 days, the leader of the opposition was released yesterday, Thursday 8 October." He was in the…

The soldiers, who took power in Mali on August 18 before embarking on a transition to bring civilians back to power, announced on Wednesday the release of eleven civilian and military figures arrested during their coup. The first to return home was Boubou Cissé, the former Malian prime minister. According to a witness, he was quite good. Another civilian, Moussa Timbiné, former president of the National Assembly, who was also arrested since the August 18 coup, has been released. It was quite relieved that he returned…

The IMF is still at the bedside of the poorest in this time of global crisis. The fund on Monday approved new emergency aid for 28 countries, 22 of which are in Africa. The money received will allow them to either alleviate their debt or help fund the fight against the effects of the pandemic, the IMF says. Last April, The IMF relieved the debt in 25 countries among the poorest by activating an emergency mechanism, the Trust Fund for Assistance and Response to Natural Disasters. A fast and efficient tool, a giant purse of…

Mali has freed more than 100 suspected or convicted jihadists as part of negotiations for the release of a prominent Malian politician and a kidnapped French charity worker, sources close to the talks told AFP on Monday. "As part of the negotiations for the release of Soumaila Cissé and Sophie Pétronin, more than a hundred…