Ex-French PM's Clearstream acquittal upheld

A French appeals court has confirmed the acquittal of Dominique de Villepin, a former prime minister, over a political scandal in which he was accused of smearing Nicolas Sarkozy, the president.

The court in Paris threw out an attempt by prosecutors to reverse last year's verdict in which he was cleared of all charges over his role in the 2004 Clearstream inquiry.

The Clearstream case centred on a forged list of names, made public ahead of the 2007 presidential election, which falsely linked Sarkozy to a corruption probe relating to secret Luxembourg bank accounts.

The list was sent to a number of people, including de Villepin, who was accused of knowing about the conspiracy but failing to stop it.

A lower court acquitted de Villepin in 2010 of charges of complicity in slander in the affair.

Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland, reporting from Paris, said the Clearstream case boiled down to a bitter rivalry between the two politicians.

"It is a huge personal vindication for Dominique de Villepin and also a big political victory with his long-running rival Nicolas Sarkozy," she said.

"Both men wanted to succeed Jacques Chirac as president, but while de Villepin because became Chirac's protege, his ruling party chose Sarkozy."

The scandal became known as the Clearstream affair after the bank involved.