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Court in Chad jails 8 opposition leaders for 8 years in insurrection case

N’DJAMENA, Chad (AP) — A Chadian court in the capital N’Djamena sentenced eight opposition leaders to eight years in prison Friday for convictions on charges including insurrection.

Leaders of the coalition opposition group Political Actors Consultation Group, or GCAP, were also found guilty by the High Court of N’Djamena for offenses including rebellion and disturbing public order. They were arrested last month.

The judge also fined them 500,000 Central African francs ($897) each. The prosecutor had requested a 10-year sentence for each of the members.

The GCAP repeatedly criticized President Mahamat Idriss Deby and called for a boycott of the 2024 election. The Chadian Supreme Court dissolved the group in April.

Other opposition leaders have been jailed since the last election. In October last year, Succes Masra, a former prime minister, was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

“We are not only surprised but disappointed by this court decision, which was based on non-existent offenses,” Adoum Moussa, the representative for the defense lawyers, said.

Beijing bans 4 New Zealand lawmakers from entering China because they visited Taiwan

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Beijing banned four New Zealand lawmakers from traveling to China for a year and demanded they apologize because they visited Taiwan on a parliamentary trip, according to a message from the Chinese embassy conveyed via parliamentary officials and shown to The Associated Press on Thursday. China has hit lawmakers from other countries with sanctions related to contact with Taiwan before, but it's the first time for New Zealand parliamentarians, the government in Wellington said. Beijing has been increasing pressure in recent years on the democratically governed island that it claims as its own territory. Two lawmakers reached by the AP on Thursday rejected the demand for an apology, while the other two could not be immediately reached. New Zealand's government said it would express concern about the travel bans to Beijing. The elected officials visited Taipei in May, as New Zealand parliamentarians have done “for decades,” a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a statement.
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