May 16, 2020 - World

Fugitive accused of financing Rwanda's genocide arrested in France

The apartment building where Kabuga was arrested on May 16 in Asnieres-sur-Seine, northwestern suburbs of Paris. Photo: Francois Guillot/AFP via Getty Images

Félicien Kabuga, who faces seven indictments of genocide for his alleged role in the deaths of more than 800,000 people in Rwanda in 1994, was arrested on Saturday by French authorities, a prosecutor with the United Nations' International Criminal Tribunal said.

The big picture: Kabuga is accused of financing a paramilitary group that purchased hundreds of thousands of machetes to massacre people — predominately Tutsis — in Rwanda's genocide.

What they're saying: "The arrest of Félicien Kabuga today is a reminder that those responsible for genocide can be brought to account, even twenty-six years after their crimes," Mechanism Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz said in a statement.

"Our first thoughts must be with the victims and survivors of the Rwandan genocide. Advocating on their behalf is an immense professional honor for my entire Office," he said.

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