Image copyright AFP Image caption Simone Gbagbo is already serving a 20-year prison term

A court in Ivory Coast has acquitted the country's former first lady, Simone Gbagbo, of crimes against humanity.

The charges related to the violence that followed the 2010 presidential poll when her husband, Laurent, refused to accept defeat to Alassane Ouattara.

The majority of the judges dismissed the prosecution's argument that Simone Gbagbo, 67, headed a crisis cell and tried to buy weapons.

She is already serving a 20-year prison term for undermining state security.

Ivory Coast has refused to extradite her to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, where Laurent Gbagbo is on trial for crimes against humanity.

The ICC has issued a warrant for Simone Gbagbo on similar charges.

More than 3,000 people died in the violence after the 2010 presidential poll.

Laurent and Simone Gbagbo were arrested in 2011 after troops stormed a bunker where the pair had taken refuge in the main city, Abidjan.</s>A court in Ivory Coast found former first lady Simone Gbagbo not guilty Tuesday of crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the 2011 post-election violence.

Gbagbo was not in court when the verdict was announced. Prosecutors have 60 days to appeal. They had called for life in prison.

Gbagbo was accused of leading a cell that carried out violent reprisals against opponents of her husband, ex-president Laurent Gbagbo, including supplying it with weapons and attack helicopters.

The International Criminal Court in the Hague wanted to try her, but agreed to let her stand trial in Ivory Coast.

Human Rights Watch and victims rights groups in Ivory Coast say they are disappointed with the verdict, which they say leaves a lot of questions about her role in the violence unanswered.

But Gbagbo still must serve a 20-year prison term on previous charges of endangering the state.

Her husband is on trial in the Hague for alleged crimes against humanity.

Ivory Coast exploded into violence in 2011 when Laurent Gbagbo refused to give up power after losing a presidential election to Alassane Ouattara. About 3,000 people were killed.</s>An Ivory Coast jury on Tuesday acquitted former first lady Simone Gbagbo of crimes against humanity during the 2010-11 post-election crisis in a stunning verdict after the prosecution had sought to jail her for life. "A majority of the jury declared Simone Gbagbo not guilty of the crimes of which she has been accused, pronounced her acquittal and ordered that she be immediately freed if she is not being held for other reasons, " said the head of the country's top criminal court, judge Kouadjo Boiqui.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Vanguard.</s>Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP | An Ivory Coast jury on Tuesday acquitted former first lady Simone Gbagbo of crimes against humanity during the 2010-11 post-election crisis in a stunning verdict after the prosecution had sought to jail her for life.

“A majority of the jury declared Simone Gbagbo not guilty of the crimes of which she has been accused, pronounced her acquittal and ordered that she be immediately freed if she is not being held for other reasons, ” said the head of the country’s top criminal court, judge Kouadjo Boiqui.

Once dubbed Ivory Coast’s “Iron Lady,” Gbagbo, who was not in court Tuesday, is already serving a 20-year sentence for “endangering state security.”

The prosecution in summing up its case against the 67-year-old wife of ex-president Laurent Gbagbo on Tuesday had called on the jury to find her “guilty of crimes against humanity and war crimes and sentence her to life imprisonment,” said prosecutor Aly Yeo.

He described her as a shadowy figure who orchestrated attacks on her husband’s opponents.

“After her spouse came to power, she started to impose herself as the real head of Ivory Coast, the army, the police and gendarmerie,” Yeo said.

Laurent Gbagbo is on trial for crimes against humanity, including murder, rape and persecution, having been handed over in November 2011 to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

The ICC also wanted to prosecute his wife and issued a warrant for her arrest, but Ivorian authorities refused to hand her over, insisting she would receive a fair trial at home.

The judge also said that the parties had 60 days to appeal the verdict which the jury reached after deliberating for six hours.

Following the 2010 presidential elections, some 3,000 people died in five months of unrest in the cocoa-rich west African state after Laurent Gbagbo, who lost to current Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara, refused to step down.

The prosecution charged that Simone Gbagbo had headed a crisis cell — “a genuine decision-making body” that allegedly coordinated attacks by armed forces and pro-Gbagbo militias.

The evidence came from documents found in the home of the presidential couple when the pair were arrested on September 11, 2011, he said.

“She replied to correspondence from arms dealers offering weapons and combat helicopters,” said Yeo.

She was accused of distributing arms to militias backing her husband following his election defeat.

In one case, she allegedly played an indirect role in the shelling of a market in Abobo, a Ouattara stronghold in the economic capital Abidjan, in November 2010.</s>A court in Ivory Coast has acquitted former first lady Simone Gbagbo of crimes against humanity and war crimes charges linked to her role in a 2011 civil war that killed about 3,000 people, state television announced on Tuesday. 



Judge Kouadio Bouatchi said a jury unanimously voted to free Gbagbo. The prosecution had asked for a life sentence, saying she participated on a committee that organised abuses against supporters of her husband’s opponent after the 2010 election. 



More than 3,000 people were killed after former President Laurent Gbagbo refused to accept defeat to current President Alassane Ouattara.

The trial, the west African country’s first for crimes against humanity, was held in an Ivorian court after the government rejected her extradition to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. 



“We are happy. Since the start of the trial we proclaimed her innocence. The prosecution’s case against her was empty,” Gbagbo’s lawyer, Mathurin Dirabou, told Reuters after the verdict was announced. 



Tuesday’s acquittal was a surprise for many. Simone Gbagbo did not attend the trial in protest and was not present for the verdict.

“I’m disappointed and sad for the victims today. Only international justice can fight against impunity, it seems. We can no longer trust Ivorian justice,” said Issiaka Diaby, president of the association for victims of the crisis.

Simone Gbagbo had already been tried and convicted in March 2015 of offences against the state and sentenced to 20 years in prison, a jail term that was upheld on appeal this month. 



Prosecutors in her war crimes trial alleged she was part of a small group of party officials from Gbagbo’s Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) which planned violence against supporters of Ouattara to stop him taking power. 



Her husband, ex-president Laurent Gbagbo, is standing trial before the ICC on similar charges connected to the brief conflict.</s>ABIDJAN, March 28 (Reuters) - A court in Ivory Coast acquitted former First Lady Simone Gbagbo of crimes against humanity and war crimes charges linked to her role in a 2011 civil war that killed about 3,000 people, state television announced on Tuesday.

The West African nation had refused to extradite her to face similar charges before the International Criminal Court where her husband Laurent Gbagbo is standing trial, choosing instead to try her at home. (Reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Writing by Joe Bavier; Editing by Louise Ireland)</s>ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) - An Ivory Coast court on Tuesday found former first lady Simone Gbagbo not guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity after a trial on her alleged role in postelection abuses that led to the deaths of thousands.

Judge Kouadio Bouatchi with the country's highest criminal court said a jury unanimously voted to free Gbagbo. The prosecution had asked for a life sentence, saying she participated on a committee that organized abuses against supporters of her husband's opponent after the 2010 election. More than 3,000 people were killed after former President Laurent Gbagbo refused to accept defeat to current President Alassane Ouattara.

Simone Gbagbo, however, still must serve 20 years in prison after being found guilty in 2015 of offenses against the state. She also has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, but Ivory Coast has refused to transfer her. The former president's ICC trial began in January.

Tuesday's acquittal was a surprise for many. Simone Gbagbo did not attend the trial in protest and was not present for the verdict.

"I'm disappointed and sad for the victims today. Only international justice can fight against impunity, it seems. We can no longer trust Ivorian justice," said Issiaka Diaby, president of the association for victims of the crisis.

Lawyer Soungalo Coulibaly did not immediately say if they would appeal.

Human rights groups have criticized Ivory Coast for conducting an incomplete investigation into Simone Gbagbo's role and for refusing to transfer her to the ICC in violation of the country's legal obligation under the Rome Statute that created the court.

Judges at the ICC in December 2014 and May 2015 concluded the investigation into her role in human rights crimes had not made sufficient progress, rejecting Ivory Coast's request to retain jurisdiction over her case, Human Rights Watch said.

Ouattara in April 2015 said Ivory Coast would handle future trial on the post-election violence.

"The acquittal by Côte d'Ivoire's high court of Simone Gbagbo for crimes against humanity reflects the many irregularities in the process against her, and leaves unanswered serious questions about her alleged role in brutal crimes committed during the 2011 post-election crisis," said Param-Preet Singh, associate director in Human Rights Watch's international justice program. "The poor quality of the investigation and weak evidence presented in her trial underscore the importance of the ICC's outstanding case against her for similar crimes."

Rights groups had refused to participate in her trial because she was being tried in isolation from other former officials, and victims had been denied the right to participate in the hearing confirming the charges, Human Rights Watch said.

Rights groups also criticize the government's failure to hold pro-Ouattara commanders accountable.</s>ABIDJAN, March 28 (Reuters) - A court in Ivory Coast acquitted former First Lady Simone Gbagbo of crimes against humanity and war crimes charges linked to her role in a 2011 civil war that killed about 3,000 people, state television announced on Tuesday.

The trial, the West African nation's first for crimes against humanity, was held in an Ivorian court after the government rejected her extradition to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

Gbagbo, who has often been absent from the trial on complaints of poor health, was not present for the verdict.

Her husband, ex-president Laurent Gbagbo, is standing trial before the ICC on similar charges connected to the brief conflict, which was triggered by his refusal to accept defeat to Ouattara in a 2010 presidential run-off election.

"We are happy. Since the start of the trial we proclaimed her innocence. The prosecution's case against her was empty," her lawyer Mathurin Dirabou told Reuters after the verdict was announced.

But Human Rights Watch said the judgement left "unanswered serious questions about her alleged role in brutal crimes."

"The acquittal ... reflects the many irregularities in the process against her," Param-Preet Singh, Associate Director in Human Rights Watch´s International Justice program, said.

"The poor quality of the investigation and weak evidence presented in her trial underscore the importance of the ICC´s outstanding case against her for similar crimes."

Simone Gbagbo had already been tried and convicted in March 2015 of offences against the state and sentenced to 20 years in prison, a jail term that was upheld on appeal this month.

Prosecutors in her war crimes trial alleged she was part of a small group of party officials from Gbagbo's Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) which planned violence against supporters of Alassane Ouattara, who is now president, to stop him taking power.

"We regret this decision when we think of the many victims," Soungaola Coulibaly, lawyer for the victims, told Reuters by telephone.

"If Simone Gbagbo is declared not guilty of these acts then who was? ... The victims do not understand this decision." (Reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Writing by Joe Bavier; Editing by Tim Cocks and James Dalgleish)</s>ABIDJAN, Cote d'Ivoire — An Ivory Coast judge says former first lady Simone Gbagbo has been found not guilty of crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Kouadio Bouatchi said Tuesday that Gbagbo was acquitted. The prosecution had asked for a life sentence, saying she participated in a committee that organized abuses against supporters of her husband's opponent after the 2010 election.

More than 3,000 people were killed after former President Laurent Gbagbo refused to accept defeat to current President Alassane Ouattara.

Simone Gbagbo still must serve 20 years in prison after being found guilty in March 2015 of against the state.

Simone Gbagbo, in custody since April 2011, has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, but Ivory Coast has refused to transfer her.</s>Simone Gbagbo had been charged with orchestrating attacks on supporters of her husband's opponent after 2010 election.

An Ivory Coast court has found former first lady Simone Gbagbo not guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity after a trial on her alleged role in postelection abuses that led to the deaths of thousands.

Judge Kouadio Bouatchi with the country's highest criminal court said a jury unanimously voted on Tuesday to free Gbagbo.

The prosecution had asked for a life sentence, saying she participated on a committee that organised attacks against supporters of her husband's opponent after the 2010 election.

Once dubbed Ivory Coast's "Iron Lady," Gbagbo, who was not in court on Tuesday, must still serve 20 years in prison after being found guilty in 2015 of offenses against the state.

The prosecution had called on the jury to find the 67-year-old wife of ex-president Laurent Gbagbo "guilty of crimes against humanity and war crimes and sentence her to life imprisonment," said prosecutor Aly Yeo.

"After her spouse came to power, she started to impose herself as the real head of Ivory Coast, the army, the police and gendarmerie," Yeo said.

Laurent Gbagbo is on trial for crimes against humanity, including murder, rape and persecution, having been handed over in November 2011 to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

The ICC also wanted to prosecute his wife and issued a warrant for her arrest, but Ivorian authorities refused to hand her over, insisting she would receive a fair trial at home.

Ivory Coast descended into civil war in 2011 after Gbagbo's refusal to accept defeat to Alassane Ouattara in a presidential runoff election. About 3,000 people were killed in the conflict.

"We regret this decision when we think of the many victims," Soungaola Coulibaly, lawyer for the victims, told Reuters.

"If Simone Gbagbo is declared not guilty of these acts then who was? ... The victims do not understand this decision."

Human Rights Watch said the judgement left "unanswered serious questions about her alleged role in brutal crimes".

"The acquittal ... reflects the many irregularities in the process against her," Param-Preet Singh, associate director in Human Rights Watch's International Justice programme, said.

"The poor quality of the investigation and weak evidence presented in her trial underscore the importance of the ICC's outstanding case against her for similar crimes."
Simone Gbagbo, the former First Lady of Ivory Coast, is acquitted of crimes against humanity. She remains in prison for a previous conviction for undermining state security.