Sanna Manjang, former head of the Gambian paramilitary unit known as the Junglers, which the United Nations (UN) accuses of extrajudicial killings and torture, appeared in a military court in Banjul on Monday to face desertion charges.

He is accused of an absence of nine consecutive years with the intention of deserting, after fleeing the country in January 2017, when Yahya Jammeh left power after 20 years. Murder charges against him, including the killing of Agence France-Presse (AFP) journalist Deyda Hydara in 2004, were dropped in July for lack of witnesses.