A German court has sentenced Gambian man Bai Lowe to life in prison for his involvement in a death squad that assassinated opponents of former Gambian dictator Yahya Jammeh, including an AFP journalist. Lowe was convicted of crimes against humanity, murder, and attempted murder for his role as a driver for the hit squad, the Junglers.
The Junglers unit was used by the then-president of The Gambia to carry out illegal killing orders with the aim of intimidating the Gambian population and suppressing opposition.
The 2004 murder of AFP correspondent Deyda Hydara in Gambia involved Lowe as a driver and accomplice, who was found to have assisted in stopping Hydara’s car on the night of the crime. Hydara’s son, Baba Hydara, said the ruling was an “important day” for the victims of Jammeh’s government but it was “just a start.”
Hydara, a former editor and correspondent for AFP, has won a landmark court ruling against Lowe, marking the first time a court has acknowledged Yahya Jammeh’s crimes against humanity. AFP’s Global News Director Phil Chetwynd welcomed the verdict as a first step to establishing responsibility in the murder of Deyda Hydara, who paid with his life in his fight for press freedom.
