Senegal council rejects opposition leader's presidential bid

Senegalese opposition leader Ousmane Sonko addresses journalists in Dakar, Senegal, on March 8, 2021. [AP photo]

Senegal's Constitutional Council on Friday rejected jailed opposition leader Ousmane Sonko's candidacy for next month's presidential vote, his lawyer said.

The 49-year-old Sonko, who finished third in the 2019 presidential election, has been at the center of a bitter stand-off with the state for more than two years.