Source: ABC News
“Mali’s former prime minister was taken into pretrial detention on Friday after expressing solidarity in a media post with jailed critics of the military junta ruling the West African country, his lawyer and a close associate said. Moussa Mara’s arrest is the latest in a crackdown on dissent by Mali’s military rulers following the country’s first pro-democracy rally since soldiers seized power nearly four years ago. Abdoulaye Yaro, a close associate of the former prime minister, told The Associated Press that Mara was arrested after a cybercrime prosecutor ordered his detention pending trial for expressing compassion for people jailed for political beliefs. A member of the cybercrime unit said Mara has been accused of ‘damaging the state’s credibility’ and that his trial would start on Sept. 29, 2025.” (08/01/25)