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Opposition MP Ramatoulaye Bodian said politicians and mayors had planned to visit Sonko at home on Monday, but were prevented by police who fired tear gas at them. Senegal's interior minister said Sunday's caravan had not sought permission and was stopped for security reasons. Senegal is seen as one of West Africa's strongest democracies and has a two-term limit for presidents. A guilty verdict could rule Sonko out of the election. Additional reporting by Joel Kouam Writing by Edward McAllister; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Senegal opposition leader appeals conviction threatening his presidential bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Diadie Ba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

DAKAR, May 15 (Reuters) - Senegalese opposition leader Ousmane Sonko has appealed a libel conviction that could prevent him running in presidential elections next year, one of his lawyers said, as another round of protests broke out on Monday. Last week, Sonko received a suspended six-month sentence for libel stemming from his accusations that the minister of tourism had embezzled funds. The conviction casts doubt over Sonko's eligibility to run for president in an election that where President Macky Sall is widely expected to seek a third term. Sonko has denied the charges and denounced the conviction, as well as another trial he is facing on charges of rape, as politically motivated. Hundreds rallied in Dakar last week in the latest show of protest against Sall's potential bid for a third term in the upcoming February poll.

DAKAR, May 8 (Reuters) - The presidential bid of a popular Senegalese opposition politician was thrown into doubt on Monday after a court of appeal handed him a heavier suspended sentence in a libel case, triggering a small protest in Dakar that riot police quelled with tear gas. But Monday's appeal hearing extended the suspended sentence to six months, said lawyer Boubacar Cissé, who represents the minister. "If this sentence is final, there is a good chance that his candidacy will be inadmissible," Diaw said. He has six days to file an appeal with the Supreme Court. Aside from the latest ruling, Sonko is also charged with raping a beauty salon employee in 2021 and making deaths threats against her.

☆ Senegal's opposition leader handed light sentence
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsSenegal's opposition leader handed light sentencePostedSenegal's leading opposition politician and presidential aspirant Ousmane Sonko on Thursday received a two-month suspended prison sentence for libel in a case involving the tourism minister, the minister's lawyer El Hadji Diouf said. Alice Rizzo has more.

Shops and banks closed early on Wednesday as the West African nation braced for fresh protests over a court case that has fuelled tension and violence ahead of presidential elections next year. Violence broke out on the day of Sonko's last court appearance on March 16, as police fired tear gas at supporters accompanying his motorcade to the courthouse. Sonko has called for more nationwide protests on Wednesday, Thursday and April 3. Police fired several rounds of tear gas and stun grenades forcing mostly student protesters to retreat into the campus from where they hurled rocks. He is also on trial for allegedly raping a beauty salon employee in 2021 and making death threats against her.

[1/7] Security forces clash with supporters of Senegal opposition leader Ousmane Sonko ahead of their leader's court appearance for a libel case against him in Dakar, Senegal March 16, 2023. Thursday's clashes began when supporters of presidential hopeful Ousmane Sonko were blocked from accompanying his motorcade to a courthouse where he faces trial for libel. Protests have taken place for three days ahead of Sonko's court appearance. Sonko supporters accuse Sall of seeking to eliminate him from the competition with a guilty verdict. The libel case was brought by Senegal's tourism minister who said Sonko had accused him of embezzlement.

☆ 'Sall is done': thousands protest in Senegal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Politics'Sall is done': thousands protest in SenegalPostedThree days of protest by supporters of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko have begun in Senegal amid growing tensions ahead of a 2024 election. David Doyle has more.

☆ Senegal ruling coalition loses comfortable majority
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-05 | by ( Diadie Ba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DAKAR, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Senegal's ruling Benno Bokk Yakaar (BBY) coalition has lost its comfortable majority in parliament, securing just two seats more than two allied opposition coalitions in a legislative election at the weekend, the electoral commission said on Thursday. Provisional results from Sunday's vote showed President Macky Sall's BBY won 82 out of 165 seats, one short of the 83 required for an absolute majority, while the alliance of opposition coalitions Yewwi Askane Wi (YAW) and the Wallu Senegal won 80. Both BBY and the YAW-Wallu alliance had earlier claimed victory, with opposition leader Ousmane Sonko saying the ruling coalition would try to steal the vote and calling for his supporters to be ready to defend their choice. "The Senegalese people gave a real lesson in democracy to the political class," BBY member Amadou Sall told Reuters. Writing by Sofia Christensen and Alessandra Prentice Editing by Alexander Winning, Frances Kerry and Lincoln FeastOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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