A French national accused by Mali's military-led government of involvement in a plot to destabilise ​the country last year has been sentenced to 20 years ‌in prison, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday, in a case that has strained ties between Bamako and Paris.

• Yann Vezilier is expected to serve his sentence in Mali following a conviction handed down late on Thursday, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the media.
• Mali's government announced the arrest of Vezilier last ​August, along with two Malian generals, accusing him of acting on behalf ​of French intelligence services to mobilise political actors, civil society figures and military officers against Assimi Goita's government.
• France’s foreign ministry denied the accusations at the time, saying they were "unfounded" and that Vezilier's arrest violated the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
• France ​reiterated the denial following his sentencing. "Our agent was carrying out a security cooperation mission and ‌in ⁠no form was participating directly or indirectly in destabilising Mali," the foreign ministry said.
• French diplomatic sources said Paris was increasingly concerned about Vezilier's health, which they said had been worsening.
• Mali has experienced more than a decade of ​unrest fuelled by Islamist ​insurgencies in its ⁠desert north and political instability that led to coups in 2020 and 2021, bringing Goita to power.
• Spokespeople for Mali's government and justice ministry did not respond to Reuters' ​requests for comment on Friday.
• Relations between Mali and France, its former colonial ruler, have deteriorated sharply in recent years, as part of a broader regional shift that has also seen Burkina Faso and Niger distance themselves from Paris.