The former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt will face a second trial on Friday for genocide, a lawyer for victims said, reviving a case against the man accused of ordering massacres of Maya people during a long civil war.
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Rios Montt, who ruled Guatemala in 1982 and 1983 after a military coup, was convicted of genocide four years ago along with another military officer but the ruling was overturned.
A Supreme Court tribunal will hear the case, Edgar Perez, a lawyer for the relatives of victims who have led a years long campaign against Rios Montt, said on Wednesday.
The 91-year-old retired general was diagnosed with senile dementia in 2015. He will be represented in court by two lawyers and will not make a personal appearance. The lawyers were not immediately available for comment.
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The new trial will revisit the earlier accusations that Rios Montt ordered massacres leading to deaths of at least 1,771 Ixil Mayan people during his 17-month rule. Rios Montt maintains his innocence, saying junior officers acted without his knowledge.
Guatemala's 1960-1996 civil war led to the deaths of more than 200,000 people and was the bloodiest among the conflicts seen in Latin America during the era.