The former Mauritanian president Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz appeared before the court in Nouakchott.The trial opened on Wednesday in Nouakchott. Ten defendants in the case were present in court, while two others were absent, including one who is on the run.

According to Sahara Media, the businessman, Mohamed Ould Boubat, who is also being prosecuted in this case, did not appear in court, as he is abroad for medical reasons. However, the judge of the session considered Ould Boubat as “a fugitive.”

The session judge also asked about the representative of the Arrahma Forum, whose seat remained vacant throughout the hearing, without specifying the reason for his absence.

He is accused of corruption, money laundering and illicit enrichment during the ten years he was in power. 

The rest of the defendants attended the session including Yahya Ould Hadmine, Mohamed Salem Ould Al-Bashir, Mohamed Abdallah Ould Oudaa and Taleb Ould Abdi Val, in addition to Mohamed Ould Amasboua.

The start of the hearing was delayed for several hours due to complex security procedures at the courthouse gate, prompting the judge to suspend it several times, pending the entry of the lawyers.