Overview

• On July 15, Equatorial Guinea asked the ICJ to impose provisional measures blocking France from selling the mansion and to restore access to the property
• The nation contends French police entered the Avenue Foch building last month and changed its locks in violation of diplomatic immunity
• Equatorial Guinea’s ambassador branded France’s actions “paternalistic and neo-colonial” as he demanded “immediate, complete and unhindered access”
• France will respond later today, defending the seizure as justified enforcement of anti-corruption statutes against Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue
• The seized mansion, valued at over €100 million and outfitted with a cinema, hammam and marble-and-gold fixtures, was confiscated after Obiang’s 2021 conviction