Six former prime ministers of Comoros have urged President Azali Assoumani to permit his jailed predecessor to seek urgent medical care abroad.
Ahmed Abdallah Sambi, the sixty-seven-year-old former head of state, has remained under strict house arrest for eight consecutive years.
A Comorian court handed Sambi a life sentence for high treason in 2022, following a widely criticized passport sales trial.
Critics and international observers labeled the judicial proceedings a charade, raising significant concerns over political motivation behind the harsh verdict.
In a formal letter, the former prime ministers warned that Sambi’s physical health is now deteriorating at a worrying rate.
The signatories requested executive clemency to allow the ailing former leader to travel internationally for appropriate, specialized medical treatment.
They offered to provide the Comorian justice system with all necessary legal guarantees to ensure Sambi’s eventual return to the country.
While state prosecutors claim tests show no life-threatening conditions, Sambi’s personal physician has strongly disputed those official medical findings.
President Assoumani, who first seized power during a 1999 military coup, faces mounting accusations of fostering a deeply authoritarian regime.
His recent election victories in the small Indian Ocean nation have sparked widespread diplomatic disputes and deadly civil protests.