Skip to main content

About Africa Realities Media

Latest Analysis

Independent analysis, commentary and investigations on Africa, the Great Lakes Region and international accountability.

CIA Operatives And The Assassination of Habyarimana.




CIA Operatives and the Targeted Assassination of Foreign Leaders
By Stephen Lendman
Global Research, July 06, 2013
Theme: Crimes against Humanity, Intelligence

No one's safe from America's long arm. From inception, CIA operatives
developed skills to kill.



Fidel Castro survived hundreds of assassination attempts. He knows
best how Washington operates.

Other leaders weren't as lucky.

In April 1994, CIA surface-to-air missiles killed Rwandan President
Juvenal Habyarimana and Burundi President Cyprien Ntaryamira.

Downing their plane put Paul Kagame in power. He became Washington's
man in Rwanda. Ethnic slaughter continued what began earlier. It's
longstanding US policy. It advances America's imperium.

Mobutu replaced Lumumba in Congo. Pinochet followed Allende in Chile.
Saddam's gone. So is Gaddafi. William Blum documented 50 CIA foreign
leader assassination attempts. Half or more times were successful.
Chavez perhaps was the latest.

He succumbed to cancer. For decades, America experimented with cancer
causing substances. Expert technologies exist.

Assassination this and many other ways claimed lives of foreign
leaders. Washington eliminated ones it wanted removed. Sometimes it
was by unexplained plane crashes. Every time was state-sponsored
murder.

Evo Morales had just cause to worry. EU allies yielded to US pressure.
They obstructed his safe passage home from Moscow. He made an
emergency landing. He had to.

He was running out of fuel. He might have crash landed. He could have
died. Perhaps a CIA missile's planned next time. Chavez knew
Washington wanted him dead. Perhaps his final thought was they
succeeded.

John Pilger called forcing down Morales' plane "an act of air piracy
and state terrorism." It reflects flagrant lawlessness.
"(G)angsterism" rules the world, said Pilger. Cowards and hypocrites
"dare not speak its name."

Bolivia formally complained to UN authorities. It cited EU aggression.
It claimed a high altitude kidnapping. Washington was largely silent.

No explanation worth hearing was forthcoming. State Department
spokesperson Jennifer Psaki said:

"We have been in contact with a range of countries that had a chance
of having Snowden land or travel through their country but I am not
going to outline what those countries were or when (these contacts)
happened."

Obama bears full responsibility. He pressured EU nations to comply.
Another article said they operate like US colonies. They do so
disgracefully in the process.

On July 3, Bolivia Rising headlined "Faced with US aggression against
Bolivian President Evo Morales, UNASUR and ALBA hold emergency
meetings," saying:

France, Spain, Italy and Portugal revoked airspace passage rights.

Morales' plane was originally routed Moscow – Lisbon. It was done so
for refueling. Hours before takeoff, Portugal revoked landing rights.

An alternate route was Moscow – Canary Islands for refueling. Doing so
required overflying France and Spain.

While airborne, both countries denied use of their airspace. So did
Italy. An emergency Vienna landing followed.

Austrian authorities demanded permission to search Morales' plane.
Doing so violates Vienna Convention international law. It's
fundamental. It's inviolable. It protects diplomatic immunity.

Morales refused to comply. "I am not a delinquent," he said. "I am a
president and I learned to know and respect international law. It
seems that other presidents don't do so."

In Vienna, he added:

"We won't be threatened. We are a small country but with dignity."

"I tell the European countries, we are not in times of colonization
and we won't be intimidated. This is the time of the peoples."

Bolivian Vice President Garcia Linera added:

"(W)e saw the most shameful page of the political history of some
European countries, not only because they violated international
agreements but also because they have violated their own dignity as
countries."

It's "verified that the colonies are not in America and Africa. Rather
sadly, (they're) in Europe."

Bolivia's UN envoy Sacha Llorenti blamed Washington. Orders came from
the White House, she suggested.

"By no means should a diplomatic plane with the president aboard be
diverted from its route and forced to land in another country."

On Tuesday, angry peaceful protesters gathered outside France's La Paz embassy.

Latin American leaders cried foul. Shakespeare explained best. They
"doth protest too much, methinks."

Public anger conceals business as usual. Affairs of state matter most.
Bristling comments make good headlines.

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Elias Jaua called it "an abuse to have put
Evo Morales' life in danger."

"We call on all countries, above all those in Latin America and the
Caribbean…to make declarations regarding this abuse."

"The least important thing is if Snowden was on board or not. We're
talking about a presidential plane, with special licenses"

"Portugal and France should take responsibility (for their actions).
They're a "real violation of all the norms of…immunity of a president
of a republic and of the sovereignty of countries and of official
flights."

Venezuela "holds the United States government, and all the governments
who have denied flight permission to the presidential plane of brother
president Evo Morales accountable, for the life of president Evo
Morales, for his dignity as president."

Snowden faces an "empire which tries to control the world."

Argentinian President Christina Kirchner called what happened "madness."

The Havana Times headlined "Cuba Denounces Affront to Evo Morales." It
published a Ministry of Foreign Affairs Statement. It said in part:

Refusal to grant Morales overflight and landing rights "constitutes an
inadmissible, unfounded and arbitrary act, an offense to all of Latin
America and the Caribbean."

It "cannot be tolerated for any reason whatsoever, an act which
damages all of Our America and deserves international repudiation."

"Cuba calls on the international community to mobilize against these
violations of international law and human rights."

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro twittered solidarity with Morales, saying:

"(F)rom Venezuela we will respond to this dangerous, disproportionate
and unacceptable aggression."

"I am in contact with Evo. They have violated all the international
immunities that protect heads of state, because of the imperial
obsession."

Ecuador's Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said "(w)e will not allow
this affront against a Latin American leader."

Organization of American States (OAS) secretary general Jose Miguel
Insulza expressed "profound displeasure.Nothing justifies an action as
disrespectful to the highest authority of a country."

OAS operates out of Washington. Its members include 35 countries.
Their deference to America is longstanding. They largely serve
capital, not populist interests. They value multilateral trade
relations.

They're beholden to Washington's economic leverage. It's eroding. It
hasn't ended. It remains significant. It's losing influence. Imperial
dominance fades slowly.

It's shelf life has a long way to go. Its markets are too valued to
lose. Its capital has divine rights, but less so. Its military might's
too formidable to ignore.

Latin leaders rail about interventionist America. They recall earlier
dark times. Despots replaced democrats. Territories were annexed.
Nations became colonies.

Latin America no longer is Washington's back yard. One day perhaps
it'll be entirely free. Maybe later. Not now. Nations able to bully
others to comply have power. Changing things take unity to resist.

Breaking free matters. Countries exerting sovereign rights over
subservience inspire others. Fidel did and survived. Raul's 82.

Chavez did. He's gone. Maduro, Morales, Correa, Cuba's next
generation, and others matter. It's their job to free Latin America
from Washington's scourge.

Doing so involves more than rhetorical posturing. It takes fortitude.
It requires supporting right over wrong. It takes action, not words.
Hopefully enough regional leaders are up to the challenge.

Hopefully others will join them. Change requires they do so. Sovereign
freedom's its own reward.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at
lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

http://www.globalresearch.ca/cia-operatives-and-the-targeted-assassination-of-foreign-leaders/5341839

---------------------
SIBOMANA Jean Bosco
Google+: https://plus.google.com/110493390983174363421/posts
YouTube Channel:
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9B4024D0AE764F3D
<http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9B4024D0AE764F3D>
http://www.youtube.com/user/sibomanaxyz999
__._,_.___


Comments

Support Our Work Now !

Africa Realities Media is independent. Your support helps us expose injustice, challenge silence and produce evidence-based analysis on Africa and the Great Lakes Region.

Recent Posts

Show more
Africa Realities Media offre un espace aux écrivains, chercheurs, experts, activistes, voix communautaires, militants, analystes et personnes ayant une expérience vécue qui souhaitent contribuer à des contenus réfléchis, responsables et courageux sur les changements nécessaires dans la région des Grands Lacs, ainsi que sur les réalités politiques, économiques, culturelles et sociales africaines souvent ignorées, minimisées ou mal représentées. Nos articles et vidéos visent à ouvrir le débat, renforcer la sensibilisation, encourager la pensée critique et favoriser une réflexion plus profonde sur les réalités vécues par les populations africaines. Nous voulons aider les peuples de la région des Grands Lacs à mieux comprendre leurs droits, notamment leurs droits humains, leur droit au développement, leur droit à la dignité, à la sécurité, au bien-être et à une vie meilleure. À travers nos contenus, nous cherchons également à rappeler aux décideurs, aux institutions publiques, aux acteurs régionaux et internationaux, ainsi qu’aux responsables politiques, leur devoir de transparence, de responsabilité et de redevabilité envers les populations qu’ils prétendent servir. Notre objectif est de contribuer à une culture de vérité, de justice, de participation citoyenne et de protection égale pour tous les peuples africains.

Why We Exist

Many abuses facing African people are committed by African states, ruling elites, armed groups, military forces and security services. But these abuses are often sustained by international silence, Western lobbying, trade interests, migration deals, mineral access, diplomatic partnerships and unequal global accountability. Africa Realities Media exposes that system.

Lived Experience Matters

Survivors, displaced communities, refugees, families affected by repression, journalists, activists, women, young people and diaspora voices are not passive subjects. They are knowledge holders. Their experiences must shape policy, advocacy, journalism and public debate. The people closest to injustice are often closest to the solutions.

Our Principle

Africa Realities Media is rooted in one principle: African lives deserve equal truth, equal justice and equal protection.

Popular Posts

THE BATTLE OF RUBAYA: Rwanda's War for Minerals Exposed

T he FDLR Pretext Collapses Under the Weight of Documented Plunder   Introduction: A Battle That Tells the Truth When Rwandan-backed RDF/M23 forces fought with extraordinary ferocity to seize and hold Rubaya — a remote mining town in North Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo — the stated justification was security. Kigali's consistent public line has been that its military presence in the DRC is a response to the threat posed by the Forces Democratiques de Liberation du Rwanda (FDLR), an armed group whose leaders include individuals linked to the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. This narrative has been accepted, qualified, or left insufficiently challenged by Western governments and multilateral institutions for over a decade. The Battle of Rubaya strips that narrative bare. What unfolded in Rubaya was not a counter-insurgency operation against genocidal remnants. It was a sustained military campaign — reinforced by the Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF), prosecuted at sign...

Rwanda’s Major John Sengati assassinated in Gitarama, Rwanda

http://www.inyenyerinews.org/amakuru-2/rwandas-major-john-sengati-assassinated-in-gitarama-rwanda/ Rwanda's Major John Sengati assassinated in Gitarama, Rwanda May 12, 2013  by  Rwema IT Webmaster   Leave a Comment By: Jennifer Fierberg Rwandans are saddened by the death of Major John Sengati who was assassinated in Gitarama (appx 50km from Kigali) on May 10th, 2013. John Sengati was a retired Major, and ADC to Gen. Kayumba Nyamwasa from 1993 to 2001. After Gen Kayumba went to UK to further his studies, Major John Sengati was appointed Commanding Officer (C.O.) of Garrison Force that was in charge of the security to VIPs under the Ministry of Defense. Around 2007, he went to study at Kigali Institute of Technology (KIST) while he was still an active member of the RDF. According to local  reports , in 2009 Major Sengati's land was redistributed in Karama to local residents. Around 2010 he was forced to retire from the army, because he was considered to be loyal and ...

Desperate Kagame: Where Does He Go From Here—and What Comes Next?

  How Paul Kagame Uses Diplomats' "Bury Your Head in the Sand" Strategy as a Green Light to Continue Rwanda's War in the DRC Africa Realities Media   |   17 July 2026 The purpose of this article is to expose a deliberate and systematic strategy: Paul Kagame's years-long practice of creating events — diplomatic dinners, RPF party meetings, genocide commemorations, international business forums and RPF Bureau Politique addresses — to which he invites foreign ambassadors and the world's business and political elite for one purpose: to explain, justify, and defend Rwanda's military invasion of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Everybody who follows this region knows the strategy now. The same narrative. The same arguments. The same defiance. At one event he tells the Trump Administration to go to hell. At the next he says those sanctioning him will leave power and he will remain. At the RPF Bureau Politique of 17 July 2026, he tells ambassadors that the on...

The Kagame Myth: Western Power, Private Jets and Rwanda’s Controlled Reality

  ANALYSIS AND INVESTIGATION Introduction: The Myth and the Man Behind the Myth There is a version of Paul Kagame that exists in the conference halls of Davos, in the pages of Western magazines, in private hotel meetings in London, Paris and Washington, and on the sleeves of European football shirts. In this version, Kagame is a visionary. A builder. A disciplined African moderniser. A leader who pulled a broken country from the ashes of genocide and turned it into what admirers often call the “Singapore of Africa”. In this version, Rwanda is clean, efficient, safe, investment-friendly and orderly. Kagame is presented as the African leader the West wants to believe in: controlled, polished, pro-market, security-focused and comfortable in elite Western spaces. Then there is the Rwanda that many Rwandans, exiles, journalists, opposition figures and human rights organisations describe. In this Rwanda, YouTubers and online commentators are jailed for what they say. Critics die in custo...

The FDLR Myth: How Rwanda Weaponises a Diminished Threat to Justify Occupation

The FDLR Myth: How Rwanda Weaponises a Diminished Threat to Justify Occupation Investigation Exposes Contradictions in Rwanda's Security Narrative For over a decade, Rwanda has justified its military presence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo by citing threats from the FDLR, a Hutu militia group linked to the 1994 genocide. But an investigation into FDLR's actual capabilities, Rwanda's military operations, and patterns of violence reveals a narrative that does not match reality. The FDLR threat, whilst real, has been systematically exaggerated and manipulated to justify objectives that have nothing to do with the militia group. Introduction The Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) occupies a central position in Rwanda's justification for military intervention in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. For more than two decades, Rwandan authorities have portrayed the militia group as an existential threat requiring sustaine...

[RwandaLibre] Re: *DHR* A qui François Hollande téléphone-t-il? Et qui reçoit-il à l'Elysée?

  Ndabona mu bo Francois Hollande avugana n'abo Kagame wenyine niwe utarimo. Nimwisomere namwe:  http://www.slate.fr/story/90909/hollande-telephone-politique-etrangere#xtor=RSS-2 From: "Samuel Desire sam4des@yahoo.com [Democracy_Human_Rights]" <Democracy_Human_Rights@yahoogroupes.fr> To: DHR <Democracy_Human_Rights@yahoogroupes.fr>; Rwandalibre Group <rwandalibre@yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, 12 August 2014, 21:08 Subject: *DHR* A qui François Hollande téléphone-t-il? Et qui reçoit-il à l'Elysée?   A qui François Hollande téléphone-t-il? Et qui reçoit-il à l'Elysée? [VISUALISATION]   http://www.slate.fr/story/90909/hollande-telephone-politique-etrangere#xtor=RSS-2 Envoyé par : Samuel Desire <sam4des@yahoo.com> ...

The Aggressor’s Complaint: Why Rwanda’s “Biased” US Sanctions Argument Echoes Russia

Kigali wants Washington to punish Congo too. But a ceasefire that leaves the occupier in place is not peace; it is occupation without noise. African lives are not worth less. African deaths are not normal. Western interests must never become a licence to kill African people. Introduction: A Familiar Complaint On 29 June 2026, Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Olivier Nduhungirehe, sat before the cameras of France 24 and declared that his country was “disappointed by the increasingly biased US mediation” in the conflict with the Democratic Republic of Congo. He asked why sanctions had targeted only Rwanda. He called the measures unfair, one-sided and counterproductive. Weeks earlier, President Paul Kagame had told Jeune Afrique that sanctions and threats were insults thrown at Rwanda, and accused Washington of exerting heavy pressure on Rwanda while treating the DRC more delicately. The grievance sounds reasonable until you remember where you have heard it before. Since 2022, the Kr...

The Empire of Kagame’s Global Friends: The Powerful Network Behind His International Protection

This article identifies the central obstacle to accountability for Paul Kagame’s actions in Rwanda and the Great Lakes region: the powerful global network of political leaders, former presidents, diplomats, philanthropists, religious figures, businesspeople, international institutions, sporting organisations, advisers and paid lobbyists that has promoted, legitimised, defended and protected him for three decades. This is a problem-identification article. It asks why Kagame has remained internationally influential and protected despite serious and extensively documented allegations concerning Rwanda’s military actions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, political repression, extraterritorial operations, mineral exploitation and the treatment of political opponents, journalists and critics. The answer is that Kagame has built an international network that gives him political access, diplomatic protection, commercial partnerships, institutional legitimacy, favourable media coverage, ...

Kagame’s Global Protection Network: Lobbying, Silence and Western Complicity: From 1990 to 2026.

Kagame’s Global Protection Network: Lobbying, Silence and Western Complicity: From 1990 to  2026.     More at:  https://www.africarealities. com/2026/07/the-empire-of- kagames-global-friends.html

French State-Sponsored Racism Without Limits Against the Hutu in France.

French State-Sponsored Racism Without Limits Against the Hutu in France France does not simply remember the Rwanda genocide. It owns it. For three decades, the French state has sponsored and enforced a racist political order — criminalising Hutu identity, silencing African expertise, enforcing a one-sided judicial record and reproducing the same ethnic hierarchy Belgium imposed on Rwanda under colonialism. This is not a failure of memory. It is state-sponsored racism without limits, dressed in the language of historical accountability. African lives are not worth less. African deaths are not normal. Western interests must never become a licence to kill African people. Introduction: Racism as Policy The genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda was real. Between April and July 1994, following an invasion of Rwanda launched by the RPF from Uganda on 1 October 1990, initially under the command of Major-General Fred Rwigyema and subsequently led by Paul Kagame after Rwigyema was killed ...

Why Africa Realities Media Is Different

Africa Realities Media speaks to Africa and to the developed world. Many abuses facing African people are committed by African states and ruling elites, but they are often protected by international silence, lobbying, public relations, trade interests, migration deals and unequal global accountability. While governments pay lobbyists to present a good image abroad, ordinary African people continue to face violence, hunger, disease, poverty, repression and exclusion. We challenge the normalisation of African suffering and demand equal truth, equal justice and equal protection.

Pourquoi Africa Realities Media est différent?

Africa Realities Media s’adresse à l’Afrique et au monde développé. De nombreux abus subis par les peuples africains sont commis par des États africains et des élites dirigeantes, mais ils sont souvent protégés par le silence international, le lobbying, les relations publiques, les intérêts commerciaux, les accords migratoires et une responsabilité mondiale inégale. Tandis que des gouvernements paient des lobbyistes pour présenter une bonne image à l’étranger, des Africains ordinaires continuent de faire face à la violence, à la faim, aux maladies, à la pauvreté, à la répression et à l’exclusion. Nous contestons la normalisation de la souffrance africaine et exigeons une vérité égale, une justice égale et une protection égale.

BBC News

Policy and Systems Change

Our work is designed to trigger debate, discomfort and action. We do not only expose injustice; we work for policy and systems change. We want governments and institutions to address the root causes of inequality, disadvantage, discrimination, exclusion and barriers affecting African people. We believe lasting change must be shaped by people with lived experience.

Exposing Injustice in Africa

Africa Realities Media is an independent African accountability platform based in London. We report, analyse and challenge the systems that shape African suffering, silence African victims and protect abusive power. We are not here to repeat diplomatic language. We are here to ask the questions that are often avoided: why are African deaths treated as normal? Why are African victims given less urgency? Why are governments that imprison, exclude, displace or kill their own people protected when they serve powerful international interests?

Africanews

Africa Realities Media gives space to writers, researchers, experts, activists, community voices, campaigners, analysts and people with lived experience who want to contribute thoughtful, responsible and courageous content about the changes needed in the region, as well as the political, economic, cultural and social African realities that are often ignored, minimised or misrepresented. Our articles and videos aim to encourage debate, raise awareness, stimulate critical thinking and support reflection. We seek to help people in the Great Lakes Region understand their rights to human rights, development and wellbeing, while also encouraging decision-makers to be more transparent, responsive and accountable.

Recent Posts

Appel à contributions

Sensibilisez le public aux causes qui vous tiennent à cœur. Prenez part au changement que vous souhaitez voir émerger. Aidez à combattre l'injustice partout où elle se manifeste.

Africa Realities Media accueille des articles originaux, analyses, tribunes, réflexions communautaires et commentaires fondés sur des faits concernant la région des Grands Lacs africains, ainsi que les questions liées à la justice, aux droits humains, à la gouvernance, aux conflits, à la paix, aux réfugiés, aux ressources naturelles et à la responsabilité publique en Afrique.

Nous accueillons également les annonces concernant de nouvelles ou d'anciennes publications liées à nos domaines d'intérêt. Vous pouvez annoncer gratuitement votre publication, notamment un livre, un rapport, une étude, un article académique ou tout autre travail pertinent.

Les articles doivent être rédigés en anglais ou en français et ne doivent pas dépasser 1 500 mots.

Veuillez inclure le nom complet de l'auteur, qui sera publié avec l'article s'il est accepté.

Avant de soumettre votre article, veuillez d'abord lire nos pages du site web afin de vérifier si votre article correspond à nos priorités éditoriales, à nos thèmes et à nos domaines d'intérêt.

Si vous avez un article, un commentaire ou une annonce de publication à partager avec un public plus large, veuillez l'envoyer par email à :

africarealitiesmedia@gmail.com

Nous étudierons la possibilité de publier gratuitement les articles et annonces de publications appropriés s'ils répondent à nos critères éditoriaux, notamment la pertinence, la clarté, l'originalité, l'intérêt public, le respect des communautés concernées et l'utilisation responsable des informations et des preuves.

Les articles sont publiés tels qu'ils sont soumis s'ils répondent à nos critères et à notre politique éditoriale. Nous ne procédons pas à une modification supplémentaire de votre article avant sa publication.