Mali’s military-led government on Thursday seized the diplomatic passport of influential and outspoken Muslim cleric Mahmoud Dicko, who is a vocal critic of the ruling junta.
Community-based station Radio Nostalgie reported that the authorities seized Mr Dicko’s passport at an airport in the capital, Bamako, upon his return from neighbouring Mauritania.
Mr Dicko was issued with the passport by the government of the late President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta.
“Less than a week after vehemently criticising the transitional government, Dicko is more than ever in the crosshairs of the authorities,” privately-owned channel Renouveau TV reported.
In May, Mr Dicko and several Islamic groups launched an “anti-secularism” movement to oppose plans to designate the country as a secular state as envisioned in a draft constitution.
Mr Dicko also played a leading role in the protest movement that led to Mr Keïta’s downfall in 2020.