A French court with the participation of a jury sentenced a former Rwandan doctor, 68-year-old Sosthene Munyeman, to 24 years in prison on charges of participating in the 1994 genocide of the Tutsi people, Le Monde newspaper reports.
Munyeman was found guilty of genocide, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to commit these crimes. The ex-medic was arrested in the courtroom. His lawyers told journalists that they would appeal the verdict.
The former doctor was accused of creating patrols that detained and then killed representatives of the Tutsi people in the city of Butari.
In addition, the prosecutor's office pointed out that Munyemana had written a letter in support of the interim government of Rwanda, which approved the killing of the Tutsis.
Munyemana denied all the charges and assured the court that he had tried to save the Tutsis and offered them asylum in government institutions.
Munyemana's case became the longest-running in France of all investigations related to the Rwandan genocide. The case was opened in 1995 in Bordeaux and transferred to Paris in 2001.
In addition to the ex-physician, the country has already sentenced six participants in the events of 1994. They received sentences ranging from 14 years to life in prison.
Background. On October 12, PACE recognized the Holodomor as genocide of the Ukrainian people.