The Inevitable Downfall of the Gravedigger of the French Right

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has just been sentenced to five years in prison for “criminal conspiracy” in connection with his murky dealings with Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

The sentence, unprecedented for a man who has held the highest office in the land, has left the president’s entourage in a state of shock, and many voices have been raised to condemn the political bias of this irregular judicial decision.

The charges are “exceptionally serious” and “likely to undermine public confidence,” insisted the presiding judge on Thursday, September 25th. The Paris court sentenced Nicolas Sarkozy to five years’ imprisonment, to be served immediately, for “allowing his closest associates” to approach Muammar Gaddafi’s Libya to finance his successful 2007 presidential campaign.

Among his associates were his then-chief of staff, Claude Guéant; his friend and later interior minister, Brice Hortefeux; and Lebanese businessman Ziad Takieddine, who died earlier this week, just before the verdict. According to the ruling, the four men’s goal was to “obtain or attempt to obtain financial support in Libya with a view to securing campaign funding.”