Former Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh goes into exile following election defeat

Gambia’s former leader, Yahya Jammeh, and his family have fled the country and gone into exile following his defeat in the 2016 election against Adama Barrow.

The homophobic dictator, who previously said he could cure AIDS with bananas, left the country just 24 hours after announcing he would hand over power to Barrow, the new Gambian president.

According to the BBC, Jammeh landed in Equatorial Guinea and has become the first president to peacefully hand over power in the country since 1965.

Newly elected president Adama Burrow previously worked as an Argos security guard in the UK and won the election in December, though Jammeh challenged the results until now.

Jammeh was known for being incredibly homophobic. He previously threatened to slit the throats of all gay people in the country and referred to them as “vermin” who should be dealt with “like mosquitos.”

Jammeh has ruled the country since 1994 and encouraged violence against the LGBT community.

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