Suspected genocide kingpin to face tribunal

A French court has ordered that Rwandan genocide suspect Felicien Kabuga be handed over to a UN tribunal to face genocide charges for allegedly arming ethnic Hutu militias in 1994. As previously reported in Legalbrief Today, Kabuga, who was arrested in Paris last month, had asked to be tried in a French court. Radio France Internationale reports that he is indicted for genocide and incitement to commit genocide. The 87-year-old, who evaded arrest for more than two decades, has denied the charges. His lawyers argued that he would not receive a fair trial at the tribunal, which is based in The Hague and in Arusha, Tanzania. Kabuga is accused of backing and arming ethnic Hutu militias who slaughtered about 800 000 people in 1994. He founded and funded the notorious Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines, a Rwandan broadcaster that actively encouraged people to search out and kill anyone who was from the Tutsi ethnic group.