KINSHASA: The death sentences of three US citizens convicted for their role in a failed coup in Democratic Republic of Congo last year have been commuted to life imprisonment, the presidency said, ahead of a visit by the new US senior adviser for Africa.
The Americans were among some 50 people, including US, British, Canadian, Belgian and Congolese citizens, who stood trial last year following the botched attempt to overthrow the government in May.
A total of 37 defendants were sentenced to death by a military court in September, including US citizens Marcel Malanga, Tyler Thompson and Benjamin Zalman-Polun.
All three were found guilty of criminal conspiracy, terrorism and other charges.
They denied any wrongdoing and unsuccessfully appealed against the verdict. But Congo’s justice ministry then proposed a pardon, which the public prosecutor requested from the presidency.
President Felix Tshisekedi on Tuesday signed three orders to commute their sentences to life in prison, his spokesperson Tina Salama said on national television.
“This presidential pardon is a first step that promises major changes in the future,” one of Malanga’s lawyers, Ckiness Ciamba, said by telephone.
Relatives of Malanga and a lawyer for Zalman-Polun did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Thompson’s parents declined to speak on the record.
Marcel Malanga is the son of US-based Congolese politician Christian Malanga, who led the armed men who briefly occupied an office of the presidency in the capital Kinshasa on May 19 before security forces killed him.
Thompson is a friend of Marcel Malanga who played high school football with him in Utah. Both are in their 20s. Zalman-Polun was a business associate of Christian Malanga.
Their sentences were commuted ahead of a trip to Congo by the newly appointed US senior adviser for Africa, Massad Boulos.
Boulos, the father-in-law of US President Donald Trump’s daughter Tiffany, will travel to Congo, Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda from April 3, the State Department said in a statement on Tuesday.
He will seek to advance efforts for peace in east Congo, where a Rwanda-backed rebellion is raging, and promote US private sector investment in the region.
Congo commutes death sentences for US citizens in failed coup
https://arab.news/bf3cy
Congo commutes death sentences for US citizens in failed coup
- The Americans were among some 50 people who stood trial last year
- A total of 37 defendants were sentenced to death by a military court in September
Dozens missing after boat carrying more than 200 migrants capsized off the coast of Gambia
- At least 102 survivors have been rescued and seven bodies recovered from the boat that capsized on New Year’s Eve in northwest Gambia’s North Bank region
BANJUL: Dozens are missing after a boat carrying more than 200 migrants on their way to Europe capsized off the coast of Gambia, the West African nation’s leader said late Friday, setting off a frantic search and rescue operation.
At least 102 survivors have been rescued and seven bodies recovered from the boat that capsized on New Year’s Eve in northwest Gambia’s North Bank region, Gambian President Adama Barrow said in a state broadcast.
The emergency services were joined by local fishermen and other volunteers in searching for the victims, days after Wednesday’s incident near the village of Jinack, he said.
Thousands of Africans desperate for better opportunities in Europe risk their lives traveling on boats along the Atlantic coast, one of the world’s deadliest migrant routes that connects the West African coast across Gambia, Senegal and Mauritania.
Many migrants seeking to reach Spain via the Canary Islands never make it due to high risks of boats capsizing. In August 2025, around 150 people were either dead or missing after their boat that came from Gambia capsized off the coast of Mauritania. A similar incident in July 2024 killed more than a dozen migrants with 150 others declared missing.
It was not clear what led to the latest tragedy. Gambia’s Ministry of Defense said the boat was found “grounded on a sandbank.”
“The national emergency response plan has been activated and the government has deployed adequate resources to intensify efforts and provide assistance to the survivors,” Barrow said.
Some of the 102 survivors were undergoing urgent medical care, the Gambian leader said.
As he condoled with families, Barrow vowed a full investigation and called the accident a “painful reminder of the dangerous and life-threatening nature of irregular migration.”
“The government will strengthen efforts to prevent irregular migration and remains determined to create safer and more dignified opportunities for young people to fulfil their dreams,” he added.
