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French arms dealers in Angola sentenced

The son of former French president Francois Mitterrand, as well as a former government minister, have been convicted of illegal arms deals with Angola. Jean-Christophe Mitterrand received a two-year suspended sentence, and ex-interior minister Charles Pasqua will serve one year in the pokey. Their convictions were for accepting bribes to grease arms deals to Angola in 1993-98 in violation of French law. Two others, Israeli-Russian billionaire Arkady Gaydamak and French magnate Pierre Falcone, received six year sentences in absentia. These two worthies were accused of buying tanks, helicopters and artillery pieces and then selling them to Angola during its civil war. Mitterrand, an Africa adviser to his father while he was president, has been ordered to pay €375,000 and Pasqua was fined €100,000, with two years of his prison sentence suspended. Read more: BBC News

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