Nicolas Sarkozy on Monday called his imprisonment a "nightmare" as prosecutors requested the former French president be released from jail pending an appeals trial over Libyan funding.

A lower court in September found the right-winger -- who was head of state from 2007 to 2012 -- guilty of seeking to acquire funding from Moamer Kadhafi's Libya for the campaign that saw him elected, and sentenced him to five years behind bars.

The 70-year-old entered jail on October 21, becoming the first former head of a European Union state to be incarcerated, and his lawyers swiftly sought his release.

The Paris Appeals Court opened the hearing on Monday, and was expected to make a decision during the day that could see Sarkozy released immediately.

The former leader appeared via video call from pris

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