Nigeria, Jan. 22 -- The absence of Cape Verdean judge in the ECOWAS court in Abuja, on Thursday, has stalled the case of an embattled Venezuelan diplomat, Alex Saab.

Januaria Costa, who is one of the three judges presiding over the case at the international court, cited 'coronavirus pandemic' as the reason for her absence even though the case was scheduled to hold virtually.

Mr Saab, an ally of President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, has spent over six months in Cape Verdean prison after his arrest in June 2020, raising questions around his legal and diplomatic immunity as a Special Envoy on a humanitarian mission to Iran.

He was arrested on the request of the INTERPOL and was to be extradited to the United States of America for alleged...