Overview

• Moussa Mara was taken into pretrial detention in Bamako on August 1 after posting solidarity messages with jailed political opponents on X.
• A cybercrime prosecutor charged him with damaging the state’s credibility, inciting public disorder and spreading false information.
• His trial is scheduled to begin on September 29, 2025, as his lawyers continue to challenge the legality of his detention.
• The arrest follows the junta’s May dissolution of political parties and a June decree extending Gen. Assimi Goita’s rule by five years.
• The move comes weeks after Mali’s first pro-democracy rally since the 2021 coup and follows increasingly strict limits on speech and assembly.