Prosecutors sought Monday to overturn former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo’s acquittal last year on crimes against humanity charges stemming from his alleged role in post-election violence that killed 3,000 people nearly a decade ago.

Gbagbo and former Ivorian youth minister Charles Ble Goude have both been unable to return to the West African nation since their January 2019 acquittals under the terms of their release set by the International Criminal Court.

“In the second ground of appeal, the Prosecutor submits that the majority erred in law and/or procedure in acquitting Mr. Gbagbo and Mr. Blé Goude without properly articulating and consistently applying a clearly defined standard of proof or approach to assessing the sufficiency of the evidence at this stage, judge Chile Eboe-Osuji said.

In the second ground of appeal, the Prosecutor submits that the majority erred in law and/or procedure in acquitting Mr. Gbagbo and Mr. Blé Goude without properly articulating and consistently applying a clearly defined standard of proof or approach to assessing the sufficiency of the evidence at this stage.

In appealing that decision, the prosecutor’s office said that decision was “legally and procedurally defective such that it cannot have the legal effect of dismissing all charges against M. Gbagbo and Mr. Ble Goude.”