Former leader jailed for role in 2009 massacre

A Guinea court has sentenced former military ruler Moussa Dadis Camara to 20 years in prison for crimes against humanity. The charges stemmed from the killing of more than 156 people in Conakry after troops opened fire at protesters who demanded a return to civilian rule in September 2009. BBC News reports that Camara took power in a coup when long-time President Lansana Conté died in 2008. However, he fled the country after surviving an assassination attempt soon after the massacre. He returned from exile in Burkina Faso in September 2022 to face justice, insisting that he was innocent. Camara was convicted along with seven of his military commanders, while four others were acquitted. Camara was charged with murder, rape, torture and kidnapping, but these were reclassified to crimes against humanity. ‘It is appropriate to declare Moussa Dadis Camara guilty of crimes against humanity, based on the responsibility of the upper hierarchy,’ said court president Ibrahima Sory II Tounkara. A report on the AllAfrica site notes that Human Rights Watch's international justice counsel, Tamara Aburamadan, said the hearing was ‘a long-awaited moment of truth for the victims and their families’. Camara’s lawyer described the ruling as politically motivated and said they would appeal.

Full report on the allAfrica site

Full BBC News report