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