1.02.13 – WEEKLY SUMMARY – MALI ARMY ACCUSED OF CRIMES, FRENCH COURT GRANTS RWANDAN EXTRADITION REQUEST

Arusha, February 1, 2013 (FH) – The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) suspects the Malian army of committing crimes, while a French court this week granted a Rwandan extradition request for a genocide suspect.

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ICC/MALIMalian security forces accused of committing crimes : Fatou Bensouda, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), suspects Malian government troops of committing abuses in the centre of the country in recent days.In a statement issued Monday, Bensouda urged the Malian authorities to “put an immediate stop to the alleged abuses and on the basis of the principle of complementarity, to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the alleged crimes”. The ICC opened an investigation into the situation in Mali two weeks ago.

FRANCE/RWANDAFrench court authorizes the extradition of a Rwandan: The Appeals Court in Dijon, France, Wednesday granted an extradition request for Innocent Musabyimana, a Rwandan wanted by Kigali. Musabyimana , 40, was arrested on January 11 in the Dijon area. He is wanted by Rwanda for genocide and crimes against humanity, for crimes committed in 1994. The suspect has the right to appeal, which would suspend his extradition.

NEXT WEEK Appeals judgment for two former ministers: The Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) is set to hand down its judgment Monday in the trial of two former ministers. Justin Mugenzi was Minister of Trade during the 1994 genocide, while Prosper Mugiraneza was Public Service Minister. Both were sentenced by the lower court to 30 years in jail.

ER/JC