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News > World

DRC Arrests One of the Last Rwandan Genocide Fugitives

  • A Rwandan refugee girl stares at a mass grave where dozens of bodies have been laid to rest outside Kigali in this July 20, 1994 file photo.

    A Rwandan refugee girl stares at a mass grave where dozens of bodies have been laid to rest outside Kigali in this July 20, 1994 file photo. | Photo: Reuters

Published 10 December 2015
Opinion

A fugitive accused of overseeing mass murder and organized rape during the Rwandan genocide has been arrested.

A former Rwandan politician accused of masterminding the massacre of tens of thousands of people has been arrested in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), local authorities said Thursday.

"The (DRC) National Public Prosecution Authority is pleased to announce the recent arrest of Ladislas Ntaganzwa, one of the last fugitive suspects sought by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda," Congolese Prosecutor General Richard Muhumuza said.

The international tribunal has indicted Ntaganzwa under allegations of personally ordering the killing of over 200,000 ethnic Tutsi during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. As mayor of Rwanda's southern Nyakizu commune, Ntaganzwa allegedly played a key role in plans to exterminate the Tutsi people. The international indictment against the former politician alleged he “substantially participated in the planning, preparation and execution of the massacre.”

In one incident on April 14-15, Ntaganzwa allegedly armed civilians and ordered them to fire into crowds of displaced Tutsi.

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As many as 1 million ethnic Tutsi and moderate Hutu were slaughtered in the genocide, with many more targeted by systematic rape and sexual abuse.

Ntaganzwa himself is also accused of presiding over organized, mass rape and sexual mutilation, largely carried out by state security forces and anti-Tutsi militias.

Ntaganzwa is among the last high-profile fugitives to be apprehended.

The international tribunal may transfer his case to Rwanda, where he is facing numerous counts of crimes against humanity.

The DRC is yet to confirm whether he will be extradited to Rwanda.

RELATED: Security Council Recognizes Role of Rwandan Genocide Tribunal

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