Ivory Coast: A member of Gbagbo's party charged and imprisoned for "terrorist acts"

A leader of the opposition party of former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo has been charged and imprisoned on at least nine counts, including "terrorist acts", in connection with unrest during the October 2025 presidential election, Ivorian justice announced Friday.

Won by President Alassane Ouattara, who has led the country since 2011, the October 2025 presidential election was generally peaceful but not without violence that left 11 dead. Several dozen activists from opposition parties, some of them party officials, were arrested or imprisoned. Some have since been released.

Eleven months after the election, Justin Koné Katinan, vice-president of the Party of African Peoples-Ivory Coast (PPA-CI) and former minister under the presidency of Mr. Gbagbo (2000-2011), was questioned on Friday about his "participation in the disturbances that occurred during the 2025 election period", said Oumar Braman Koné, public prosecutor of the Abidjan court, in a statement.

Following this hearing, a judicial investigation was opened against him, "with a warrant for his arrest", for several charges, including "terrorist acts", "attack against the authority of the State", "conspiracy against the authority of the State" and "participation in an insurrectionary movement", according to the statement.

"This prosecution is irregular and illegal. It is in total violation of the penal code," Mr. Katinan's lawyer, Roselyne Serikpa, told AFP.

- "Kidnapping" -

"Under the current regime, all PPA-CI cadres are now walking prisoners on probation," the party leadership reacted in a statement calling for the release of Mr. Katinan and referring to an "institutional kidnapping."

On Friday, the prosecutor also mentioned a statement he had published on October 24, 2025, on the eve of the presidential election, recalling that "acts of violence committed during the election period would not go unpunished."

Mr. Katinan was initially summoned by the police on Wednesday, following a complaint filed against him by the ruling party, the Rally of Houphouëtists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP), for "defamation" and "spreading false news".

This complaint followed statements by the opposition leader accusing the ruling party of being behind the rise of illegal gold mining, a subject that has sparked heated debate in the country recently.

According to the prosecutor, this complaint will be heard in a criminal court.

"In the space of one hearing, the charge changed completely, shifting from a simple speech offense to a series of criminal offences," lamented the PPA-CI.

In July, Laurent Gbagbo's former defense minister, Moïse Lida Kouassi, who was being prosecuted for "terrorist acts," was released after a year in detention. Other opposition members from various parties have also been released in recent months.

Damana Pickass, another PPA-CI executive and close associate of Laurent Gbagbo, is still imprisoned and accused of "terrorist acts" in connection with the October 2025 presidential election.

Mr. Pickass and Mr. Katinan are often cited as potential successors to Laurent Gbagbo who, at 81 years old, is still at the head of the PPA-CI.

The authorities regularly repeat that the arrests have no connection to political affiliation.