LOME, June 22, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Aamron, a popular Togolese rapper known for criticising President Faure Gnassingbe's rule, was freed Saturday after nearly a month in detention, a lawyer for the musician told AFP.

Aamron, real name Essowe Tchalla, was taken from his home in the capital, Lome, on May 26, after calling for a satirical demonstration to mark Gnassingbe's birthday on June 6.

His arrest sparked a wave of outrage in the tiny west African country, helping to trigger protests from the beginning of June.

Gnassingbe has ruled Togo since 2005, when he took power after the death of his father, who himself held the reins of power for 38 years.

The 59-year-old has recently consolidated his hold on power through a constitutional reform criticised by his opponents. They have denounced what they have called a crackdown on dissent against the move.

Political figures and Tchalla's relatives have insisted that Aamron was detained because of his criticism of the president.

After more than a week without news following his arrest, the rapper resurfaced with a video on June 5 apologising to Gnassingbe for his "insulting" comments.

Aamron said he had been transferred to a psychiatric centre in Zebe, around 50 kilometres (30 miles) east of Lome, for what was described as "severe depression".

"Aamron was released from the psychiatric hospital this morning," his lawyer Celestin Agbogan told AFP on Saturday.

"The public prosecutor personally told us that no proceedings had been initiated against him," he added.

Protesters, many of them young, took to the streets on June 5 and 6 to protest against the arrests of critical voices, the rise in electricity prices and Gnassingbe's constitutional reform.

Authorities arrested 56 people who were eventually released, while several others had their custody extended, according to the public prosecutor.

Journalists at the protests were briefly detained and forced by security forces to delete their footage.

Amnesty International on Tuesday urged the Togolese government to investigate claims that some protesters had been tortured.

Togo's government said it was unaware of any such cases.

Fresh calls to protest on June 26, 27 and 28 have circulated on social media, drawing a warning from the government.

"Any call to protest or any invitation to observe any directive leading to disobedience or a popular uprising, which disrupts public order, constitutes a blatant violation of current regulations," the government said Thursday.