Former Ivorian President, Laurent Gbagbo has been granted freedom to return to the country by incumbent President, Alassane Ouattara.
Gbagbo has been out of Ivory Coast for years as he faced charges for his “actions against humanity” at the International Criminal Court, The Hague.
The court has finally acquitted the former President and his close ally in the case.
Ouattara on Wednesday said Gbagbo can return to the country as he will respect the judgement of the ICC, The Hague.
Gbagbo’s return may however be threatened by his pending 20-year sentence for misappropriation of funds. It’s unclear if Ouattara will give him a state pardon and anything other than that holds the threat of a riot.
The former leader has shown political interests in the leadership of Ivory Coast again and still influences the choice of his core loyalists who have taken the fight to the government since Ouattara’s re-emergence.
They argued that the former President was selectively excluded from participating in the election which Ouattara won by a landslide amid protests by youths.