France’s Ex-President Sarkozy Released From Jail Under Supervision

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been released from La Santé Prison in Paris, three weeks into a five-year sentence for conspiring to fund his 2007 campaign with money from Muammar Gaddafi’s Libya.

A Paris court approved his early release on Monday, placing him under strict judicial supervision and barring him from leaving France ahead of his appeal trial scheduled for March 2026.

Sarkozy, 70, called his detention “gruelling” but vowed to prove his innocence, saying, “The truth will prevail.”

His lawyer, Christophe Ingrain, described the decision as “a step forward.” Sarkozy is prohibited from contacting witnesses or justice ministry officials linked to the case.

He is the first French ex-leader jailed since World War II collaborator Philippe Pétain in 1945.