Former Gambian interior minister Ousman Sonko goes on trial in Switzerland on Monday (8 January) accused of crimes against humanity committed under the regime of ex-dictator Yahya Jammeh.

Sonko is accused of “having supported, participated in and failed to prevent systematic and generalised attacks as part of the repression carried out by the Gambian security forces against all opponents of the regime”.

The charges span a 16-year period and include nine counts of crimes against humanity including murder, rape and torture.

There are 10 complainants in the case, who include eight “direct victims” and the daughter of a person who died in detention, according to Geneva-based NGO Trial International.

He denies all the charges, according to his lawyer Philippe Currat.

The trial, which is due to last a month, takes place in the town of Bellinzona in Switzerland’s southern region.

It is taking place under the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows a foreign country to prosecute crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide regardless of where they were committed.

A verdict is not expected before March. If found guilty, he faces life imprisonment.

Sonko, who turns 55 years old on Tuesday, was interior minister in The Gambia from 1994 to 2016.

He has been in custody since his arrest in Switzerland in January 2017 after applying for asylum following his sacking as a minister.

The trial in Switzerland is not the first dealing with Jammeh-era crimes to be held outside of The Gambia.

In late November, a German court sentenced Bai Lowe, a former State Guard driver, to life in prison over his participation in a death squad that assassinated opponents of Jammeh.

(AFP)