South African artists celebrate Nelson Mandela 95th birthday with colorful posters. (Photo: AP)
The mastermind of a "Boer Army" white supremacist plot to assassinate Nelson Mandela and drive blacks out of South Africa was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Tuesday after a trial lasting more than 10 years, state media said.
Former university lecturer Mike du Toit was convicted of high treason for his leadership role in the "Boeremag", a rag-tag militia of apartheid loyalists accused of a botched 2002 coup attempt in Africa's biggest economy that aimed to overthrow the ruling African National Congress.
At least one other leader of the group also received a 35-year sentence at the Pretoria High Court, while others among the 20 defendants were handed lesser sentences, state broadcaster SABC reported.
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