Malian Singer Rokia Traoré to Be Extradited to Belgium After Arrest in Italy Over Custody Dispute

Mali singer Rokia Traore is set to be extradited to Belgium after Italy’s highest court rejected her appeal, her lawyer confirmed on Wednesday. Traore, 50, was arrested in Rome in June over an international child custody dispute.

One of Africa’s leading vocalists, the singer, was detained on June 20 at Rome’s Fiumicino Airport under a European arrest warrant. She had been sentenced in absentia to two years in prison by a Belgian court in October 2023 in connection with the custody case involving her daughter.

The custody battle began in 2019 when the Brussels Court of First Instance granted sole custody of the child to Traoré’s Belgian ex-partner, Jan Goossens.

This judgment was upheld by the Brussels Court of Appeal in 2020,  but Traoré refused to hand over her daughter, remaining in Mali.

This led to accusations of “kidnapping, sequestration, and hostage-taking” by Belgian authorities. Traoré has strongly contested the allegations and appealed the rulings.

An international arrest warrant was issued against her in October 2020, resulting in multiple arrests in Europe, including a two-month detention in France’s Fleury-Mérogis prison. Her recent arrest in Rome occurred while travelling to perform at a concert.

The Italian Court of Cassation’s decision to approve extradition followed a European Court of Justice ruling favouring the Belgian request.

Her lawyer, Maddalena Del Re, criticised the Belgian judicial process, saying it violated Italian constitutional principles and international conventions as the conviction was issued without Traore’s presence.

Rokia suffered an injustice. She was arrested without the Belgian criminal court hearing her voice. Now, the battle for Rokia’s rights moves to Brussels, Del Re told Reuters.

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