DAKAR (Reuters) - Senegal's Constitutional Council on Friday rejected opposition leader Ousmane Sonko's application to run for president in elections next month, one of his lawyers, Cire Cledor Ly, said.

       The ruling deals a final blow to Sonko's presidential aspirations, hampered by a flurry of court cases that have piled up against him since he was accused of rape in 2021, spurring violent protests across the country.

       Ly did not provide a reason for the council's decision.

       The Feb. 25 election is a "joke because everything is opaque, it lacks transparency," he said via telephone.

       (Reporting by Portia Crowe and Diadie Ba; Writing by Sofia Christensen; Editing by Mark Potter)