French Prosecutors Seek 7-Year Sentence for Sarkozy in Gaddafi Campaign Financing Appeal

French prosecutors are seeking a seven-year prison term for former French president Nicolas Sarkozy in his appeal over the alleged illegal financing of his 2007 presidential campaign by Muammar al-Gaddafi's Libyan regime.

The request, presented during hearings at Paris's court of appeal, also calls for a five-year ban on holding public office and a €300,000 fine. Prosecutors charge Sarkozy—who served as France's leader from 2007 to 2012 and once held the role of Andorra's co-prince—with conspiracy, corruption, and illegal campaign financing. They allege he agreed with the Libyan regime to receive covert funds in return for efforts to influence the judicial status of Abdullah Senussi, Gaddafi's brother-in-law and key associate.

Prosecutors claim Libya channelled approximately €6 million via intermediaries to back Sarkozy's bid, an arrangement that "contaminated" the funding of France's presidential election under the Fifth Republic. The court is scheduled to issue its ruling on 30 November.

Sarkozy's legal team insists on his innocence, rejecting any Libyan funds reaching his campaign or personal holdings. His counsel, Christophe Ingrain, said after the session there was "no illicit enrichment" and that they would establish his client's "complete innocence" in closing submissions expected within 15 days.

The former conservative president has been under judicial control with conditional release since last November. He entered prison on 21 October, labelling the proceedings a "judicial scandal" and political targeting. He has always denied irregularities in his dealings with Gaddafi's government.

Sarkozy is the first ex-French president to appear in person at the defendants' bench. His predecessor, Jacques Chirac, was convicted in 2011 for crimes tied to his Paris mayoralty but stayed away from court for health reasons. The trial stands out as one of France's most high-stakes political cases in recent years, due to its purported ties between the Élysée Palace and Gaddafi's dictatorship.