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Businessman in custody of UN tribunal

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The ICTR has handed down 11 judgements since its inception in 1995
    NAIROBI

    Businessman Gaspard Kanyarukiga, accused of supporting the 1994 Rwandan genocide, was transferred on Monday to the custody of the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in Arusha, Tanzania. He had been arrested on Friday in South Africa.

    In a statement, the ICTR reported on Monday that Kanyarukiga, 59, has been indicted on four counts, comprising genocide, complicity in genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide and extermination as a crime against humanity.

    He is accused of transporting police and Hutu extremist "Interahamwe" militia to Nyange Church in the commune of Kivumu in the western province of Kibuye. The group allegedly poured fuel through the roof, set the building on fire and used grenades and guns to kill about 2,000 Tutsi civilians who had taken refuge there.

    According to the tribunal's office of the prosecutor, Kanyarukiga allegedly supervised the massacre, and then ordered the removal of the corpses from the church.

    Kanyarukiga operated businesses in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, and Kibuye during the 1994 genocide. He is to be held at the UN Detention Facility in Arusha, pending trial.

    Kanyarukiga is the 69th person to be arrested by the ICTR. The tribunal has so far completed 23 trials, and trials for 19 suspects are under way.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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