Sarkozy, who was the conservative president of France<\/a> between 2007 and 2012, was handed a five-year jail term in September for criminal conspiracy over a plan for late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to fund his electoral campaign.<\/p>\n He walked out of his home hand-in-hand with his singer wife, Carla Bruni, and left in a car escorted by police on motorbikes.<\/p>\n The ex-president was reported by the Associated Press (AP) as saying \u201can innocent man is being locked up\u201d while on his way to prison.<\/p>\n Updated at\u00a003.47 EDT<\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n Show key events only<\/p>\n Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature<\/p>\n A lawyer for Nicolas Sarkozy said a motion had been filed for his release moments after the former French president entered jail, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.<\/p>\n Attorney Christophe Ingrain told reporters:<\/p>\n A request has been filed for Nicolas Sarkozy\u2019s release.<\/p>\n Presiding judge Nathalie Gavarino said during sentencing that the offences were of \u201cexceptional gravity\u201d, and therefore ordered Sarkozy to be jailed even if he filed an appeal.<\/p>\n Sarkozy Lawyer Christophe Ingrain speaking to media after former French president Nicolas Sarkozy arrival at La Sant\u00e9 prison in Paris, France, on 21 October 2025. Photograph: Blondet Eliot\/ABACA\/ShutterstockShare<\/a><\/p>\n Nicolas Sarkozy had already been stripped of France\u2019s highest distinction,<\/a> his Legion of Honour, after his conviction for corruption was confirmed last year.<\/p>\n Six out of 10 people in France<\/a> believe the prison sentence to be \u201cfair\u201d, according to a survey of more than 1,000 adults conducted by pollster Elabe, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.<\/p>\n Nicolas Sarkozy, former French president, and his wife, Carla Sarkozy, leaving their home before the former president\u2019s incarceration in the Gaddafi affair, in Paris, 21 October 2025. Photograph: Paoloni Jeremy\/ABACA\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n But Sarkozy still enjoys support on the French right and has on occasion had private meetings with president Emmanuel Macron.<\/p>\n Macron welcomed Sarkozy to the \u00c9lys\u00e9e Palace on Friday, a government source said, a decision the French president defended on Monday.<\/p>\n Macron said:<\/p>\n It was normal, on a human level, for me to receive one of my predecessors in this context.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.36 EDT<\/p>\n Below are the latest photographs from Paris this morning coming through over the wires:<\/p>\n Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy waves to supporters as he leaves his house with his wife, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, on the day of his incarceration at La Sant\u00e9 prison to begin his five-year prison sentence for criminal conspiracy over attempts to raise campaign funds from Libya, in Paris, France, 21 October 2025. Photograph: Sarah Meyssonnier\/ReutersFrench president Nicolas Sarkozy arrives at La Sant\u00e9 prison for incarceration, Paris, France on 21 October 2025. Photograph: Jeanne Accorsini\/SIPA\/ShutterstockNicolas Sarkozy and Carla Bruni are seen leaving their home on 21 October 2025 in Paris, France. Photograph: Pierre Suu\/Getty ImagesWife of former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Carla Bruni (R), greets people who have come to support her husband on the day he is due to enter prison in Paris, France, 21 October 2025. Photograph: Teresa Su\u00e1rez\/EPAShare<\/a> Angelique Chrisafis is the Guardian\u2019s Paris correspondent.<\/p>\n The former French president Nicolas Sarkozy<\/a> has entered a prison in Paris, after a court sentenced him to five years for criminal conspiracy <\/a>over a scheme to obtain election campaign funds from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.<\/p>\n Sarkozy, the rightwing president of France<\/a> between 2007 and 2012, is the first former head of an EU country to serve time in prison, and the first French postwar leader to be jailed.<\/p>\n Sarkozy, who has appealed against his conviction<\/a>, had sought to avoid being photographed at the gates of La Sant\u00e9 prison in the south of Paris. Instead, he organised a highly stage-managed departure from his home in the west of Paris where he walked on foot with his wife, the singer Carla Bruni, to greet crowds gathered to in the street outside his home.<\/p>\n First his children, led by Giulia, his 14-year-old daughter with Bruni, slowly walked from his home to greet well-wishers. Louis Sarkozy, one of Sarkozy\u2019s sons, who is preparing to run for mayor in Menton on the French Riviera next spring, had called for supporters to demonstrate in the street. Some shouted \u201cNicolas! Nicolas!\u201d At the same time, Sarkozy\u2019s social media account published a message in which he said: \u201cI am innocent\u201d, and his imprisonment was a \u201cjudicial scandal\u201d.<\/p>\n Sarkozy was found guilty last month of criminal conspiracy<\/a> over a scheme to seek funding from the regime of Gaddafi for his victorious 2007 French presidential election campaign.<\/p>\n You can read the full piece from Angelique Chrisafis here: Nicolas Sarkozy enters prison to begin five-year sentence over campaign funds<\/a><\/p>\n Share<\/a>Request for freedom filed for Sarkozy, lawyer says<\/p>\n French ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy\u2019s lawyer says he has filed a request for freedom, Reuters reports.<\/p>\n Under the ruling, the 70-year-old was only able to file a request for release to the appeals court once he was behind bars, and judges then have up to two months to process it.<\/p>\n The Paris judge ruled that Sarkozy would start to serve prison time without waiting for his appeal to be heard, due to \u201cthe seriousness of the disruption to public order caused by the offence\u201d.<\/p>\n Nicolas Sarkozy and Carla Bruni are seen leaving their home on 21 October 2025 in Paris, France. Photograph: Pierre Suu\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.22 EDT<\/p>\n Shortly after he stepped into a car to head to La Sant\u00e9, Nicolas Sarkozy published a long message on X in which he claimed to be a victim of revenge and hatred.<\/p>\n He said:<\/p>\n As I prepare to step outside the walls of La Sant\u00e9 prison, my thoughts go out to the French people of all walks of life and opinions.<\/p>\n I want to tell them with my unwavering strength that it\u2019s not a former President of the Republic being locked up this morning, it\u2019s an innocent man.<\/p>\n I will continue to denounce this judicial scandal, this ordeal I\u2019ve endured for over 10 years. This is a case of illegal financing without any funding!<\/p>\n A long-term judicial investigation launched on the basis of a document whose falsity has now been proven. I\u2019m not asking for any advantage, any favor.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not to be pitied, because my voice carries. I\u2019m not to be pitied because my wife and children are by my side, and my friends are countless.<\/p>\n But this morning, I feel a deep sorrow for France, which finds itself humiliated by the expression of a vengeance that has taken hatred to an unprecedented level.<\/p>\n I have no doubt. The truth will triumph. But the price to pay will have been crushing.<\/p>\n Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy is surrounded by relatives and supporters before leaving in a car on the day of his incarceration in Paris, France, 21 October 2025. Photograph: Beno\u00eet Tessier\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Nicolas Sarkozy\u2019s lawyers said the former president will be held in solitary confinement, where he will be kept away from all other prisoners for security reasons, the Associated Press (AP) reports.<\/p>\n His lawyer Christophe Ingrain said on BFM TV that incarceration \u201cstrengthens his determination, it strengthens his rage to prove that he is innocent.\u201d<\/p>\n Ingrain said Sarkozy is planning to write a book about his prison experience. Laywer of Nicolas Sarkozy, Jean-Michel Darrois as the car carrying former French President Nicolas Sarkozy arrives at La Sant\u00e9 prison in Paris, France, on 21 October 2025. Photograph: Rapha\u00ebl Lafargue\/ABACA\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n Darrois said on France<\/a> Info news broadcaster.<\/p>\n First, he packed a bag with a few sweaters because it\u2019s cold in prison, and earplugs because it\u2019s very noisy.<\/p>\n Isolation like what he\u2019s going to go through is painful, but he got himself prepared.<\/p>\n Sarkozy told La Tribune Dimanche newspaper:<\/p>\n I\u2019m not afraid of prison. I\u2019ll hold my head high, including in front of the doors of La Sant\u00e9.<\/p>\n I\u2019ll fight till the end.<\/p>\n The paper said Sarkozy has his prison bag ready with clothes and the 10 family photos he is allowed to bring.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Dozens of supporters stood outside Nicolas Sarkozy\u2019s home from early Tuesday, some holding up framed portraits of him, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.<\/p>\n They sang the French national anthem, as neighbours looked on from their balconies.<\/p>\n \u201cNicolas, Nicolas! Free Nicolas,\u201d shouted a crowd who gathered in the road outside to show their support.<\/p>\n A supporter holds a poster with a portrait of Nicolas Sarkozy and the slogan \u201cStrong France\u201d as they attend a gathering called by the sons of former French president Nicolas Sarkozy in support of their father in Paris, France, 21 October 2025. Photograph: Beno\u00eet Tessier\/Reuters<\/p>\n Flora Amanou, 41, said she had closely followed both of Sarkozy\u2019s presidential campaigns:<\/p>\n This is truly a sad day for France and for democracy. This trial is based on nothing.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a003.59 EDT<\/p>\n Sarkozy arrives at La Sant\u00e9 prison<\/p>\n Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy<\/a> has arrived at La Sant\u00e9 prison in Paris on Tuesday to start a five-year prison term, Reuters reports.<\/p>\n Sarkozy, who was the conservative president of France<\/a> between 2007 and 2012, was handed a five-year jail term in September for criminal conspiracy over a plan for late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to fund his electoral campaign.<\/p>\n He walked out of his home hand-in-hand with his singer wife, Carla Bruni, and left in a car escorted by police on motorbikes.<\/p>\n The ex-president was reported by the Associated Press (AP) as saying \u201can innocent man is being locked up\u201d while on his way to prison.<\/p>\n A police convoy carrying former French president Nicolas Sarkozy arrives at the Prison de la Sante to begin his five-year prison sentence for criminal conspiracy over attempts to raise campaign funds from Libya, in Paris, France, 21 October 2025. Photograph: Christian Hartmann\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a003.47 EDT<\/p>\n Opening summary<\/p>\n Good morning and welcome back to our live coverage of Europe<\/a>.<\/p>\n France\u2019s ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy<\/a> is to be jailed on Tuesday after being found guilty of acquiring Libyan funding for his 2007 presidential run.<\/p>\n France\u2019s right-wing leader from 2007 to 2012 was handed a five-year jail term in September for criminal conspiracy over a plan for late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to fund his electoral campaign.<\/p>\n The 70-year-old, who has appealed against the verdict and denounced an \u201cinjustice\u201d, is to be incarcerated in La Sant\u00e9 prison in Paris.<\/p>\n France\u2019s former president Nicolas Sarkozy hugs his wife, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, as he leaves his residence to present himself to La Sante prison for incarceration on a five-year prison sentence after being convicted of criminal conspiracy over a plan for late Libyan dictator Moamer Kadhafi to fund his 2007 electoral campaign, in Paris, on 21 October 2025. Photograph: Julien de Rosa\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cIf they absolutely want me to sleep in prison, I will sleep in prison \u2013 but with my head held high,\u201d he told the press after his 25 September verdict.<\/p>\n Sarkozy\u2019s family has called for supporters to show solidarity with the former head of state as he leaves his Paris home for prison on Tuesday.<\/p>\n Sarkozy will be the first French leader to be incarcerated since Philippe Petain, the Nazi collaborationist head of state who was jailed after the second world war.<\/p>\n He has told Le Figaro, a right-leaning newspaper, that he will be taking with him a biography of Jesus and a copy of \u201cThe Count of Monte Cristo\u201d, a novel in which an innocent man is sentenced to jail but escapes to take revenge.<\/p>\n In other developments:<\/p>\n French police stepped up the hunt Tuesday for thieves who stole priceless royal jewels from the Louvre museum in a spectacular daylight robbery. As the museum remained closed for a second day Monday, officials said 60 investigators were working on the theory that an organised crime group was behind the raid in which nine pieces of jewellery were taken.<\/p>\n Russia\u2019s air defence units destroyed 55 Ukrainian drones overnight, RIA news agency reported on Tuesday, citing data from the Russian defence ministry.<\/p>\n Russia\u2019s top diplomat Sergei Lavrov and US counterpart Marco Rubio discussed preparations for an upcoming summit between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in a call on Monday, both sides said. Rubio \u201cemphasised the importance of upcoming engagements as an opportunity for Moscow and Washington to collaborate on advancing a durable resolution of the Russia-Ukraine war,\u201d principal deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement.<\/p>\n Volodymyr Zelenskyy has painted his meeting last week with Donald Trump as a success that yielded progress on acquiring new air defence systems, a contrast from reports that Trump had berated him with obscenities in the White House. In comments to the media on Sunday that were embargoed until Monday, the Ukrainian president described Trump\u2019s message at the meeting as \u201cpositive\u201d, even though Zelenskyy did not secure Tomahawk cruise missiles.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761036730_231_5000.jpg\")
A police convoy carrying former French president Nicolas Sarkozy arrives at the Prison de la Sante to begin his five-year prison sentence for criminal conspiracy over attempts to raise campaign funds from Libya, in Paris, France, 21 October 2025. Photograph: Christian Hartmann\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Angelique](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Angelique_Chrisafis.png\")
Angelique Chrisafis<\/p>\n
Jean-Michel Darrois, another of Sarkozy\u2019s lawyers, said on Tuesday that the former president got himself \u201cmentally prepared\u201d to be held in solitary confinement, where he would be kept away from all other prisoners for security reasons.<\/p>\n