West Africa: Activist Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for ‘Inciting Insurrection’

Digital activist Ibrahim Zigui, a member of the PPA-CI, the main opposition party, was sentenced on 18 May 2026 to five years’ imprisonment and a fine of 20 million CFA francs (approximately US$35,500) by an Ivorian court. He was found guilty of “inciting insurrection” and “disorderly conduct.” Zigui, who has some 600,000 followers on TikTok and 250,000 on Facebook, regularly publishes videos critical of the Ouattara government.

The sentence comes after several months of pre-trial detention….