French prosecutors requested a seven-year prison sentence and a €300,000 fine for former President Nicolas Sarkozy in his trial over allegations of accepting illegal financing for his 2007 presidential campaign from the former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
The National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) also called for a five-year ban on Sarkozy's civic, civil and family rights, a measure that would bar him from holding elected office or serving in any public judicial role.
Prosecutors have accused Sarkozy and several of his former associates—including ex-Interior Ministers Claude Guéant and Brice Hortefeux, as well as former Budget Minister Eric Woerth, now a member of President Emmanuel Macron’s Renaissance party—of striking an 'unconceivable, unprecedented, and indecent' agreement with Gaddafi.
However, prosecutors have emphasized that the central figure in the case is Sarkozy himself, accusing him of knowingly benefiting from a 'corruption pact' with a foreign dictatorship.
The former president is accused of accepting €50 million in cash from Gaddafi—more than twice the legal campaign funding limit of €21 million at the time. French law imposes strict caps on campaign spending and permits contributions only from French citizens or residents, France24 reported.
70-year-old Sarkozy, who led France from 2007 to 2012, faces charges of passive corruption, illegal campaign financing, concealment of embezzlement of public funds and criminal association.
In exchange for financial support, as Politico reported, Sarkozy allegedly used his presidential powers to strengthen France’s diplomatic and business ties with Tripoli and reconsider the case of Gaddafi’s brother-in-law, Abdullah Senussi. In 1999, a French court found Senussi guilty in absentia for his role in the bombing of a flight from Brazzaville, in the then-People’s Republic of the Congo, to Paris—a tragedy that killed all 170 passengers—and sentenced him to life in prison.
The allegations first emerged in 2011 when a Libyan news agency reported that Gaddafi's government had funded Sarkozy's campaign.
'It’s thanks to us that he reached the presidency,' Gaddafi claimed in an interview. 'We provided him with the funds that allowed him to win.
In 2012, the French investigative outlet Mediapart published what it described as a Libyan intelligence memo referencing a €50 million funding agreement.
Investigators confirmed that the memo was authentic, though no conclusive evidence of a completed transaction has been presented. They also looked into a series of trips by Sarkozy's associates to Libya between 2005 and 2007.
Sarkozy has dismissed the Libya allegations as politically motivated and rooted in forged evidence.
"I will therefore continue to fight step by step for the truth, and for my faith in the wisdom of the court," he said.
Sarkozy said during the trial that he had never accepted any money from Kadhafi.
"You will never ever find a single euro, a single Libyan cent, in my campaign," he said.
The 70-year-old is already serving a one-year prison sentence under house arrest after being found guilty of corruption.
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U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that his upcoming reciprocal tariffs will apply to all nations, rather than just targeting the 10 to 15 countries with the largest trade imbalances. Trump plans to unveil the tariff package on Wednesday, calling it “Liberation Day.”
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is attempting to back out of a critical minerals deal, warning that such a move would bring serious repercussions.
Bangladesh’s main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), has warned of public unrest if elections are not held by December, following remarks from interim leader Muhammad Yunus suggesting a possible delay until 2026.
Over 300,000 Canadians were left without power on Sunday as a severe ice storm battered parts of Ontario, according to electricity provider Hydro One. The storm brought freezing rain and ice pellets over the weekend, with power outages continuing into Monday morning in some regions.
French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is awaiting a critical court ruling on Monday that could determine her political future. Le Pen, head of the National Rally (RN), faces accusations of embezzling over 3 million euros ($3.3 million) of European Parliament funds to pay France-based staff.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that his upcoming reciprocal tariffs will apply to all nations, rather than just targeting the 10 to 15 countries with the largest trade imbalances. Trump plans to unveil the tariff package on Wednesday, calling it “Liberation Day.”
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is attempting to back out of a critical minerals deal, warning that such a move would bring serious repercussions.
Bangladesh’s main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), has warned of public unrest if elections are not held by December, following remarks from interim leader Muhammad Yunus suggesting a possible delay until 2026.
Over 300,000 Canadians were left without power on Sunday as a severe ice storm battered parts of Ontario, according to electricity provider Hydro One. The storm brought freezing rain and ice pellets over the weekend, with power outages continuing into Monday morning in some regions.
French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is awaiting a critical court ruling on Monday that could determine her political future. Le Pen, head of the National Rally (RN), faces accusations of embezzling over 3 million euros ($3.3 million) of European Parliament funds to pay France-based staff.
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