\n Victims of Chad's former dictator Hissene Habre fear that his recently granted prison furlough could set the stage for a full release, one their lawyers said Tuesday.\n<\/p>\n
\n The 78-year-old was jailed in Senegal in 2016 over abuses committed during years of iron-fisted rule in Chad, but his supporters have stepped up a campaign for his release over the past year.\n<\/p>\n
\n On Monday, a judge in Senegal's capital Dakar granted Habre two months of prison leave over coronavirus fears, sparking concerns about an eventual release.\n<\/p>\n
\n Habre seized power in the semi-desert country in 1982, fleeing to Senegal in 1990 after he was in turn overthrown.\n<\/p>\n
\n Some 40,000 people are estimated to have been killed under his rule in the former French colony.\n<\/p>\n
\n The ex-dictator was eventually arrested, then convicted in 2016 of war crimes and crimes against humanity, at an African Union-backed trial in Dakar, where he is serving his sentence.\n<\/p>\n
\n On Tuesday, one of the lawyers who represented Habre's victims told AFP that the ex-dictator's supporters had for the past year waged a concerted campaign to secure his full release.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"The concern is that this could be a disguised release,\" said Reed Brody, the human rights lawyer.\n<\/p>\n
\n While the government has \"stated very clearly\" that Habre will return to prison, Brody added, the fear is that the ex-dictator could use his wealth to up the ante in his release campaign.\n<\/p>\n
\n A judge on Monday granted 60 days of leave to Habre, after his lawyer argued that the septuagenarian's age left him particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus pandemic.\n<\/p>\n
\n Habre is currently under house arrest at his home in Ouakam, a district in Dakar, until he returns to prison.\n<\/p>\n
\n Senegal has recorded 237 cases of coronavirus to date, with two deaths.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Victims of Chad's former dictator Hissene Habre fear that his recently granted prison furlough could set the stage for a full release, one their lawyers said Tuesday. The 78-year-old was jailed in Senegal in 2016 over abuses committed during years of iron-fisted rule in Chad, but his supporters have stepped up a campaign for his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[553],"tags":[],"ji_location":[],"class_list":["post-44086","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-live-feed"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n