French national gets 20 years in Mali over alleged destabilization plot

BAMAKO - A French national accused by Mali's military-led government of involvement in a plot to destabilise the country last year has been sentenced to 20 years in prison, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday, in a case that has strained ties between Bamako and Paris.

Yann Vezilier is expected to serve his sentence in Mali following a conviction handed down late on Thursday, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the media.

Mali's government announced the arrest of Vezilier last August, along with two Malian generals, accusing him of acting on behalf of French intelligence services to mobilise political actors, civil society figures and military officers against Assimi Goita's government.

France’s foreign ministry denied the accusations then, saying they were "unfounded" and that Vezilier's arrest was in violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

France reiterated the denial following his sentencing. "Our agent was carrying out a security cooperation mission and in no form was participating directly or indirectly in destabilising Mali," the foreign ministry said.

French diplomatic sources said Paris was increasingly concerned about Vezilier's health, which they said had been worsening.

Mali has experienced more than a decade of unrest fuelled by Islamist insurgencies in its desert north and political instability that led to coups in 2020 and 2021, bringing Goita to power.

Spokespeople for Mali's government and justice ministry did not respond to Reuters requests for comment on Friday.

Relations between Mali and France, its former colonial ruler, have deteriorated sharply in recent years, part of a broader regional shift that has also seen Burkina Faso and Niger distance themselves from Paris.

-Reporting by Mali newsroom and Portia Crowe in Dakar; Additional reporting by John Irish in Paris; Writing by Amindeh Blaise Atabong; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet, Sanjeev Miglani, William Maclean/Reuters