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SERREKUNDA, Gambia (AP) \u2014 West Africa’s regional bloc ECOWAS on Sunday approved setting up a special court to try crimes committed in Gambia during its military dictatorship.<\/p>\n
The landmark decision was announced at the summit of regional heads of state in Nigeria\u2019s capital, Abuja.<\/p>\n
The court will cover alleged crimes committed under military dictator Yahya Jammeh<\/a>, whose rule from 1996 to 2017 was marked by arbitrary detention, sexual abuse and extrajudicial killings. Jammeh lost a presidential election in 2016 and went into exile in Equatorial Guinea a year later after initially refusing to step down.<\/p>\n See for yourself \u2014 The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Calls for justice for the victims of the dictatorship had been growing for years in Gambia, a country surrounded by Senegal except for a small Atlantic coastline. In 2021, a truth commission in the country wrapped up its hearings with strong recommendations, urging the government to try perpetrators.<\/p>\n In May, Jammeh’s former interior minister was sentenced to 20 years in jail<\/a> by a Swiss court for this crimes against humanity. In November, a German court convicted a Gambian man<\/a>, Bai Lowe, of murder and crimes against humanity for involvement in the killing of government critics<\/a> in Gambia. The man was a driver for a military unit deployed against opponents of Jammeh.<\/p>\n Gambia\u2019s Justice Ministry described the move as a \u201chistoric development\u201d that \u201cmarks a significant step forward for Gambia, the region, and international community” in a statement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nTrusted news and daily delights, right in your inbox<\/h4>\n