Jammeh warned not to return from exile

The Gambia has warned ousted leader Yahya Jammeh not to try to return from his exile in Equatorial Guinea. Ousman Rambo Jatta, an official with Jammeh's Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction party, said the disgraced politician could arrive back at any time. This after a recording of his conversation with Jammeh was leaked. In the recording, the ousted leader was heard voicing his support for a demonstration by his supporters planned for Thursday. ‘I don't want any violence and I don't want anybody to touch anything or to destroy anything,’ Jammeh said. The Gambia's neighbours forced him into exile after he refused to accept his defeat in the December 2016 elections. He was later accused of human rights abuses, including extrajudicial killings, torture and arbitrary detention. These have been aired over the past year at public hearings of the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission set up by his successor, Adama Barrow. BBC News reports that government spokesperson Ebrima Sankareh said the authorities ‘cannot guarantee his safety and security’.

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