Mauritania ex-leader Aziz loses final appeal against 15-year jail term

Mauritania's Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected former president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz's second appeal against his conviction for abusing his office to illegally amass a vast fortune, confirming his 15-year prison sentence.

Aziz, who came to power in a 2008 coup, was originally sentenced to five years' jail in December 2023 after being found to have accumulated $70 million worth of assets and capital during his presidency by illicit means.

But after challenging that ruling for the first time, an appeals court extended his time in jail by 10 years in May 2025, which the Supreme Court upheld on Tuesday.

"The (Supreme) Court delivered its decision today, November 4, 2025, confirming the conviction of Mr. Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz," according to a judicial document obtained by AFP.

The ruling makes Aziz, 69, one of the rare former heads of state condemned for illicit enrichment while in office. Most ex-leaders tried in the national or international courts are prosecuted for war crimes.

It also seals his fall from grace under his successor and former right-hand man Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani, who was at Aziz's side during the coup.

Aziz has been in custody since his original trial began in 2023, while the authorities have confiscated the former leader's assets and stripped him of his civic rights.

He led the country linking the Maghreb and sub-Saharan Africa until 2019, returning a nation once prone to coups and jihadist activities by and large to stability.