A Paris court has granted former French president Nicolas Sarkozy early release from jail, pending an appeal, just weeks after he started a five-year sentence for conspiring to raise campaign funds from Libya.
He was jailed on 21 October after a court found him guilty in September of criminal conspiracy over efforts by close aides to procure funds for his 2007 presidential bid from late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
He was acquitted of all other charges, including corruption and receiving illegal campaign financing.
Sarkozy's prison sentence had been enforced swiftly because of the "extraordinary seriousness" of the crime, judge Nathalie Gavarino told the court. He was incarcerated at La Sante prison in Paris last month.
But the public prosecutor this morning recommended that Sarkozy be freed pending his appeal and put under strict judicial supervision, with a ban on contact with other indicted individuals and witnesses involved in the proceedings.
The prosecutor said that Sarkozy did not represent a flight risk.
The court agreed to release him under judicial supervision, which would include a ban on leaving France, BFM TV said.
Sarkozy has consistently denied wrongdoing, calling himself a victim of revenge and hatred. He did not attend the hearing in person but was taking part via video link from prison.
He told the court that he would respect any demand from the judiciary if he was freed.
"I'm French, sir. I love my country. I'm fighting for the truth to prevail. I will comply with all the obligations imposed on me, as I always have," he said.
Speaking of being in jail, he added: "It’s tough. Really tough - as it must be for any detainee. I’d even say it's draining."
Sarkozy has faced several legal battles since leaving office.
Last year, France's highest court upheld a conviction for corruption and influence peddling, ordering him to wear an electronic tag for a year, a first for a former French head of state. The tag has now been removed.
Also last year, an appeals court confirmed a separate conviction for illegal campaign financing over his failed re-election bid in 2012. A final ruling from France's highest court is expected on that case this month.
Sarkozy is also under formal investigation in another case for being an accessory to witness tampering
In the courtroom this morning showing their support were his wife, the singer and model Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, and two of the former president's sons.
Under French law, Sarkozy can only be kept behind bars if no other way can be found to safeguard evidence, prevent witness tampering, stop him from escaping or reoffending, or to protect him.
The appeals trial is due to take place in March.
The former president has spent his time in prison separated from the general population with two bodyguards occupying a neighbouring cell to ensure his safety.
Prison wardens have said the move is an insult to their profession, but Interior Minister Laurent Nunez has said it is necessary in view of his "status" and "the threats against him".
Sarkozy late last month also received a visit from Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin, despite warnings from France's top prosecutor Remy Heitz that it risked "undermining the independence of magistrates" before the appeals trial.
Sarkozy is the first French leader to be incarcerated since Philippe Petain, the Nazi collaborationist head of state, who was jailed after World War II.
His social media account last week posted a video of piles of letters, postcards and packages it said had been sent to him, some including a collage, a chocolate bar or a book.
On the day he entered jail, a large crowd sang the national anthem outside his home and urged him to "come back quick".
In the so-called "Libyan case", prosecutors said his aides, acting in Sarkozy's name, struck a deal with Gaddafi in 2005 to illegally fund his victorious presidential election bid.
Investigators believe that in return, Gaddafi was promised help to restore his international image after Tripoli was blamed for the 1988 bombing of a plane over Lockerbie, Scotland, and another over Niger in 1989, killing hundreds of passengers.
The court convicted Sarkozy of criminal conspiracy over the plan. But it did not conclude that he received or used the funds for his campaign.
