Latest news with #SuccesMasra
Calgary Herald
10-08-2025
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
Chad court jails ex-PM, opposition leader for 20 years
Article content N'Djamena (AFP) — A court in Chad jailed former prime minister and opposition leader Succes Masra for 20 years Saturday, convicting him of hate speech, xenophobia and having incited a massacre. Article content The court in N'Djamena jailed Masra, one of President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno's fiercest critics, for his role in inciting inter-communal violence in which 42 people were killed on May 14. Article content Article content Article content Most of the massacre victims were women and children in Mandakao, southwestern Chad, according to the court. On Friday, the state prosecutor had called for a 25-year sentence. Article content Article content 'Our client has just been the object of a humiliation,' lead defence lawyer Francis Kadjilembaye told AFP. Article content 'He has just been convicted on the basis of an empty dossier, on the basis of assumptions and in the absence of evidence,' he added. Article content What we had witnessed, he said, was the weaponisation of the courts. Article content Activists with his Transformers Party said they would put out a 'special message' later Saturday. Article content Masra was arrested on May 16, two days after the violence, and charged with 'inciting hatred, revolt, forming and complicity with armed gangs, complicity in murder, arson and desecration of graves'. Article content He stood trial with nearly 70 other men accused of taking part in the killings. Article content Article content – Presidential candidate – Article content Originally from Chad's south, Masra comes from the Ngambaye ethnic group and enjoys wide popularity among the predominantly Christian and animist populations of the south. Article content Those groups feel marginalised by the largely Muslim-dominated regime in the capital N'Djamena. Article content During the trial, Masra's lawyers argued that no concrete evidence against him had been presented to the court. Article content He went on hunger strike in jail for nearly a month in June, his lawyers said at the time. Article content Like other opposition leaders, Masra had left Chad after a bloody crackdown on his followers in 2022, only returning under an amnesty agreed in 2024. Article content Trained as an economist in France and Cameroon, Masra had been a fierce opponent of the ruling authorities before they named him prime minister five months ahead of the presidential election.
Arab Times
10-08-2025
- Politics
- Arab Times
Former Chadian PM sentenced to 20 years in prison
YAOUNDE, Aug 10, (Xinhua): Former Chadian Prime Minister Succes Masra was sentenced to 20 years in prison by a criminal court on Saturday in the capital N'Djamena. Masra was found guilty of inciting the public to hatred and hostility, according to the ruling handed down by Chad's criminal court. Masra's lawyers called the verdict "an ignominy" and said they will appeal. Masra was arrested in May after a government probe alleged that he incited people to violence, which led to the death of 42 people in clashes in Mandakao village in the southwestern province of Logone Occidental. Masra, president of the opposition political party The Transformers, went into exile in 2022 but later returned and was appointed prime minister by President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno. After serving as prime minister for five months in 2024, Masra resigned to pave the way for the formation of a new government
The Sun
10-08-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Chad court sentences ex-PM Masra to 20 years for inciting violence
N'DJAMENA: A Chadian court has sentenced former prime minister and opposition leader Succes Masra to 20 years in prison. The conviction relates to charges of hate speech, xenophobia, and inciting inter-communal violence that left 42 dead. The court imposed an additional fine of one billion CFA francs (1.5 million euros) on Masra, a vocal critic of President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno. Most victims of the May 14 massacre were women and children in Mandakao, southwestern Chad. State prosecutors had sought a 25-year sentence prior to the verdict. Defence lawyer Francis Kadjilembaye condemned the ruling as unjust. 'Our client has just been the object of a humiliation,' Kadjilembaye told AFP. He argued the conviction lacked evidence, calling it a politically motivated weaponisation of the judiciary. Supporters of Masra's Transformers Party protested the verdict on Saturday. The party named former finance minister Bedoumra Kordje as interim leader following Masra's sentencing. Masra was arrested on May 16, two days after the violence erupted. Charges against him included inciting hatred, revolt, and complicity in murder. Nearly 70 others stood trial alongside him for their alleged roles in the killings. Masra, an economist trained in France and Cameroon, previously fled Chad after a 2022 crackdown on opposition figures. He returned under a 2024 amnesty before briefly serving as prime minister. His presidential bid last year saw him secure 18.5 percent of votes against Deby's 61.3 percent, though Masra claimed victory. Ethnic tensions between Fulani herders and Ngambaye farmers reportedly triggered the May violence. The International Crisis Group estimates such conflicts have caused over 1,000 deaths in Chad since 2021. - AFP
Daily Telegraph
09-08-2025
- Politics
- Daily Telegraph
Chad court jails ex-PM, opposition leader for 20 years
Don't miss out on the headlines from Breaking News. Followed categories will be added to My News. A court in Chad jailed former prime minister and opposition leader Succes Masra for 20 years Saturday, convicting him of hate speech, xenophobia and having incited a massacre. The court in N'Djamena jailed Masra, one of President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno's fiercest critics, for his role in inciting inter-communal violence in which 42 people were killed on May 14. It also imposed a fine of one billion CFA francs (1.5 million euros). Most of the massacre victims were women and children in Mandakao, southwestern Chad, according to the court. On Friday, the state prosecutor had called for a 25-year sentence. "Our client has just been the object of a humiliation," lead defence lawyer Francis Kadjilembaye told AFP. "He has just been convicted on the basis of an empty dossier, on the basis of assumptions and in the absence of evidence," he added. He called it a weaponisation of the courts. Activists with Masra's Transformers Party gathered later Saturday to protest the conviction and condemn Deby. They said former finance Bedoumra Kordje had been appointed interim party leader. Masra was arrested on May 16, two days after the violence, and charged with "inciting hatred, revolt, forming and complicity with armed gangs, complicity in murder, arson and desecration of graves". He stood trial with nearly 70 other men accused of taking part in the killings. - Presidential candidate - Originally from Chad's south, Masra comes from the Ngambaye ethnic group and enjoys wide popularity among the predominantly Christian and animist populations of the south. Those groups feel marginalised by the largely Muslim-dominated regime in the capital N'Djamena. During the trial, Masra's lawyers argued that no concrete evidence against him had been presented to the court. He went on hunger strike in jail for nearly a month in June, his lawyers said at the time. Like other opposition leaders, Masra had left Chad after a bloody crackdown on his followers in 2022, only returning under an amnesty agreed in 2024. Trained as an economist in France and Cameroon, Masra had been a fierce opponent of the ruling authorities before they named him prime minister five months ahead of the presidential election. He served as premier from January to May last year after signing a reconciliation deal with Deby. Masra faced off against Deby in the 2024 presidential elections, winning 18.5 percent against Deby's 61.3 percent, but claimed victory. Of the May 14 killings, one local source said they were thought to have sprung from a dispute between ethnic Fulani nomadic herders and local Ngambaye farmers over the demarcation of grazing and farming areas. Conflicts between pastoralists and sedentary farmers are estimated by the International Crisis Group to have caused more than 1,000 deaths and 2,000 injuries in Chad between 2021 and 2024. yas-lnf/jj/gv Originally published as Chad court jails ex-PM, opposition leader for 20 years
The Star
09-08-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Chad's former PM and opposition leader sentenced to 20 years
N'DJAMENA (Reuters) -Chad's former Prime Minister and opposition leader Succes Masra has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after he was convicted of disseminating racist and xenophobic messages that incited violence, his lawyer told Reuters on Saturday. Masra is a staunch opponent of President Mahamat Idriss Deby, who nonetheless served as prime minister in Deby's interim government for about five months before running against him in a May 2024 election. Chad's prosecutor launched an investigation against him in May in relation to a clash in which dozens were killed in the southern town of Mandakao that month. In addition to 20 years in prison, Masra was ordered to pay a fine of 1 billion CFA francs ($1.8 million), said Kadjilembaye Francis, one of his lawyers. The lawyer said his team planned to appeal. (Reporting by Mahamat Ramadane; Writing by Portia Crowe; Editing by Mark Porter)
