Sudan court sentences former president to 2 years in prison on corruption charges

A Sudanese court on Saturday convicted the country’s former president Omar al-Bashir of money laundering and corruption and sentenced him to two years of incarceration.

al-Bashir is also wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crime and genocide charges related to conflict in Darfur in the 2000s, according to The Associated Press, which noted that the country’s military has said it will not extradite its former leader.

al-Bashir has reportedly been in custody since he was ousted in April amid mass protests. The demonstrations, which began last December, resulted in a power-sharing agreement between Sudan’s military and civilians.

The 75-year-old former president will be sent to a minimum security lockup for the elderly, but will remain in jail during a separate trial related to the killing of protesters, according to the AP.

Attorney Mohammed al-Hassan, who is defending al-Bashir, told the wire service that he will appeal Saturday’s decision. He added that the former president’s “morale is high.”

al-Hassan also said that the ex-president’s second wife, Widad Babakr, was detained for questioning about alleged bank accounts and assets as part of a corruption probe into the al-Bashir family’s wealth.

Protesters began calling for al-Bashir to leave office after demonstrations broke out over price increases and shortages last December. Dozens of protesters were killed in the months before al-Bashir, who had ruled the country since 1989, was ousted.