A former Gambian interior minister has been charged with crimes against humanity and other offenses by Swiss prosecutors.
They accuse Ousman Sonko of involvement in and failure to prevent systematic attacks on Yahya Jammeh’s opponents.
Mr. Sonko held several senior positions in Mr. Jammeh’s authoritarian administration, which ruled The Gambia for more than two decades after seizing power in a military coup in the mid-1990s.
Prosecutors accuse Mr. Sonko of aiding and abetting repression up until 2016.
He left The Gambia that year to seek asylum in Europe, shortly before President Jammeh was deposed in an election.
Prosecutors claim that the repression included the systematic use of torture, rape, and extrajudicial executions.
Mr. Sonko has been detained in Switzerland for more than six years.
He denies ever committing any crimes and denies allegations of crimes against humanity in The Gambia at the time.
His lawyer also accused the Swiss authorities of procedural violations during the lengthy investigation, according to the BBC.
