Bwindi Killer Suspect Netted
THE suspected mastermind of the gruesome 1999 massacre of eight American and British tourists and a Ugandan in the world famous Bwindi Impenetrable National Park has been arrested in the DR Congo and handed over to the International Criminal Tribunal fo
THE suspected mastermind of the gruesome 1999 massacre of eight American and British tourists and a Ugandan in the world famous Bwindi Impenetrable National Park has been arrested in the DR Congo and handed over to the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
Alfred Wasike reports that Tharcisse Renzaho, the former Prefect of Kigali and a close confidant of the late President Juvenal Habyarimana, has been on the run since their regime collapsed to the Rwandan Patriotic Army in 1994.
Renzaho is also to be tried for the 1994 Rwanda genocide in which up to 800,000 people were killed. He is alleged to have been a top mastermind in the killings.
Describing him as a major figure, the United States’ State Department spokesman, Richard Boucher, told journalists in Washington on Monday that Renzaho will also be tried for playing a leading role in fomenting the conflicts that have dogged Congo for the past decade. Boucher was quoted by the Washington File.
“He is believed to be the leader of the Army for the Liberation of Rwanda (ALIR), a group that is linked to the killing of American and British citizens in Bwindi, Uganda, in 1999. So that’s a major figure, and it’s an important development,†Boucher told the media. He said the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda was preparing Renzaho’s charges.
The USA launched a massive man-hunt in June 2002 for the leaders of the former Rwandan army militia (Interahamwe) said to have attacked Bwindi and destroyed property worth $500,000. They also destablised Rwanda and the DR Congo. A $5m reward was placed on the head of the killers. The US has listed ALIR, Joseph Kony’s LRA and the Allied Democratic Force and al-Qaeda as terrorists.
Boucher said, “This is the third arrest of an alleged leader of the Rwandan genocide since the beginning of the campaign that we undertook with the announcement of the Rewards for Justice.â€
He said the rewards for justice does not apply in the case of Renzaho’s arrest because he was arrested by a government.
“The arrest of Renzaho is part of a commitment that President Joseph Kabila made to President George W. Bush during the General Assembly in New York,†he said.
Ends
Alfred Wasike reports that Tharcisse Renzaho, the former Prefect of Kigali and a close confidant of the late President Juvenal Habyarimana, has been on the run since their regime collapsed to the Rwandan Patriotic Army in 1994.
Renzaho is also to be tried for the 1994 Rwanda genocide in which up to 800,000 people were killed. He is alleged to have been a top mastermind in the killings.
Describing him as a major figure, the United States’ State Department spokesman, Richard Boucher, told journalists in Washington on Monday that Renzaho will also be tried for playing a leading role in fomenting the conflicts that have dogged Congo for the past decade. Boucher was quoted by the Washington File.
“He is believed to be the leader of the Army for the Liberation of Rwanda (ALIR), a group that is linked to the killing of American and British citizens in Bwindi, Uganda, in 1999. So that’s a major figure, and it’s an important development,†Boucher told the media. He said the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda was preparing Renzaho’s charges.
The USA launched a massive man-hunt in June 2002 for the leaders of the former Rwandan army militia (Interahamwe) said to have attacked Bwindi and destroyed property worth $500,000. They also destablised Rwanda and the DR Congo. A $5m reward was placed on the head of the killers. The US has listed ALIR, Joseph Kony’s LRA and the Allied Democratic Force and al-Qaeda as terrorists.
Boucher said, “This is the third arrest of an alleged leader of the Rwandan genocide since the beginning of the campaign that we undertook with the announcement of the Rewards for Justice.â€
He said the rewards for justice does not apply in the case of Renzaho’s arrest because he was arrested by a government.
“The arrest of Renzaho is part of a commitment that President Joseph Kabila made to President George W. Bush during the General Assembly in New York,†he said.
Ends