Rwandan Genocide Suspect Felicien Kabuga Dies in Custody

(MENAFN) Felicien Kabuga, a Rwandan businessman accused of playing a major role in financing and supporting the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, has died while in detention, according to an announcement by the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT). He was 93.

Reports state that Kabuga died while receiving medical care in The Hague, where he had been held at a United Nations detention facility while awaiting the continuation of legal proceedings related to his case.

Authorities confirmed that an internal inquiry has been ordered into the circumstances of his death, with a designated judge assigned to examine the case.

Kabuga had been accused of providing financial backing to armed groups involved in the genocide and of using a radio station to encourage and incite mass violence. The 1994 genocide in Rwanda resulted in the deaths of more than 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus over a period of roughly 100 days. He faced multiple charges, including genocide, conspiracy, incitement, and crimes against humanity.

An international arrest warrant had been issued years earlier, but Kabuga remained at large until his arrest in France in 2020. He was subsequently transferred to The Hague, where he entered a plea of not guilty.

His trial began in 2022 but was later suspended after judges ruled that he was not medically fit to stand trial due to dementia. At the time of his death, he was reportedly awaiting possible release to a country willing to accept him.

According to his legal representative, continued detention had lost its judicial purpose after he was deemed unfit for trial, as stated in comments reported by international media sources.

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