The US State Department has banned the former president of The Gambia, Yahya Jammeh, and his immediate family members from entering the United States.
It said he was being barred because of his involvement in corruption.
Mr Jammeh went into exile in Equatorial Guinea after losing the 2016 presidential election to Adama Barrow.
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A truth and reconciliation commission has been set up in The Gambia to investigate the well documented human rights abuses committed during his two decades in office.
Correspondents say it is unclear why the US has issued the travel ban now two years after he left office.
Source: BBC