Renowned Malian musician Rokia Traore faces imminent extradition to Belgium, marking a significant turn in a long-standing international custody dispute.
The Brussels court sentenced Traore to two years in prison last year for parental abduction, a charge stemming from a complex custody battle over her nine-year-old daughter. The ruling was made in absentia, as Traore had previously fled to Mali, defying a travel ban imposed by French authorities.
Despite her attempts to challenge the extradition order, her lawyer, Maddalena Claudia Del Re, confirmed on September 26 that the transfer to Belgium would occur within ten days.
The father’s legal representative revealed that he had been estranged from his daughter for five years, last seeing her when she was four. To resolve the conflict, the father has proposed a new custody agreement, which has received validation from both Malian and Belgian courts.
Traore’s legal saga began in March 2020 with her arrest in Paris on a European warrant. At that time, a Belgian court had ordered her to return her daughter to the child’s Belgian father. However, Traore managed to return to Mali before the extradition could be executed.
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