Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has begun a 5-year prison sentence after being convicted of conspiracy to fund his 2007 election campaign with money from the former leader of Libya, Muammar Gaddafi. He is the first ex-leader of France to be jailed since 1945 and plans to appeal his conviction.

• Nicolas Sarkozy, former French president, was sentenced to 5 years in prison for campaign finance conspiracy.
• The conviction stems from allegations of accepting funds from Muammar Gaddafi's Libyan regime for his 2007 presidential campaign.
• Sarkozy insists the case is politically motivated and immediately launched an appeal upon entering La Sante prison.