Following Accusations of Terrorism, a Former Ivory Coast Defense Minister was Freed

According to his political party, former Ivory Coast defense minister Moise Lida Kouassi was freed on Tuesday after being held since August on suspicion of terrorist crimes. Sebastien Dano Djedje, executive president of the opposition African Peoples’ Party (PPA-CI), told AFP that Kouassi’s release as defense minister under former president Laurent Gbagbo “is a relief” but added, “But his health is not good.”

Prior to the October presidential election, Kouassi and eleven other individuals were charged in August with “acts of terrorism” and placed in pre-trial custody. He was charged with inciting the violence that erupted in Abidjan at the beginning of August.

Other party members are still incarcerated, according to Djedje. Prior to the election, several dozen opposition party activists, including some high-ranking officials, were also detained or imprisoned.

After serving five years in prison for “incitement to insurrection,” digital activist Ibrahim Zigui, who has ties to the opposition and supports PPA-CI, was released from incarceration on appeal on Monday.

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