Popular Senegalese opposition leader Ousmane Sonko suspends hunger strike  

Ousmane Sonko, the imprisoned Senegalese opposition leader, has ended the hunger strike he started in mid-October, according to two of his party officials who visited him in prison.

“He has suspended the use of this weapon for the time being”, said MP Guy Marius Sagna in a message sent to AFP.

Mr. Sonko was jailed on various charges, including criminal association with a terrorist enterprise, undermining state security, and inciting insurrection.

The opposition leader said his current hurdles were politically motivated by President Macky Sall and aimed to stop him from running in the 2024 presidential election in Senegal.

Sonko earlier said his hunger strike was a demonstration of solidarity with other political activists who had been unjustly arrested in the West African country for expressing their political opinions.

Recall that the Supreme Court on Friday annulled the ruling that put Sonko back in the 2024 presidential race. The court ruled that the case would start all over. The lawyers of the opposition politician have condemned the ruling while voicing their disappointment.

Mr. Sonko’s lawyers suggested their client, who finished third in the 2019 presidential race, might run again in February 2024.

However, the state’s judicial agent stated in a statement that the Senegalese authorities would appeal the judgment and that Mr Sonko might still not participate in the forthcoming political exercise.

Sonko’s name has not been shortlisted among presidential candidates, and this would prevent him from participating in the February 2024 presidential race.

His conviction in June triggered days of violent protests that killed 16 people, according to the government, and up to 30 people, according to his party.