Simone Gbagbo, formerly the Ivory Coast first lady will be tried for crimes [AFP report] against humanity on April 25, her lawyer said Friday. Gbagbo was already sentenced to 20 years in jail for attacking state authority, which occurred following the country’s debated 2010 elections. The International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] in The Hague has accused Gbagbo of having a significant role in the post-election violence, which resulted in 3,000 deaths. The Ivory Coast government refused to turn Gbagbo over to the ICC, instead insisting that their own courts can effectively dispense justice.

The former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo pleaded not guilty in January to charges of crimes against humanity at the start of his trial at the ICC. Laurent Gbagbo faces four charges of crimes against humanity for murder, attempted murder, rape and persecution during a wave of post-election violence between December 2010 and April 2011. He is charged along with [JURIST report] former militia leader Charles Ble Goude, who also denies the charges. This is the first time [BBC report] the ICC has tried a former head of state.