Rwanda genocide suspect to claim asylum in South Africa, lawyer says, complicating extradition

KIFI

Published June 20, 2023 7:03 AM

By GERALD IMRAY
Associated Press

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — A lawyer for one of the last remaining suspects accused of orchestrating brutal killings during the Rwandan genocide nearly 30 years ago says his client will apply for political asylum in South Africa. Fulgence Kayishema is a former police officer in Rwanda who was tracked down and arrested in South Africa last month. An application for asylum would potentially further delay his extradition to a U.N. tribunal in Tanzania and ultimately to his home country for a long-awaited trial. Kayishema is one of the last four fugitives sought by a U.N. tribunal for alleged genocide and crimes against humanity in 1994. Now 62 years old, he was on the run for half of his life.

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