An investigator who worked on key defense cases at the UN tribunal for Rwanda has been kidnapped in Kenya, amid mounting evidence that Rwandan President Paul Kagame's intelligence services were behind the abduction.
The kidnapping of Rwandan national Jean Chrysostome Ntirugiribambe in Nairobi has been widely condemned by political activists and defense lawyers at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) where the victim worked for years as a legal investigator."It is our information that he was seized by Rwandan intelligence agents, possibly with the connivance of local police in Nairobi," Christopher Black, a Canadian defense lawyer who worked with Ntirugiribambe at the ICTR, wrote in a letter obtained by Digital Journal.On July 7, Black officially requested Kenya's attorney general and ministers of interior and foreign affairs to investigate the matter.The latest abduction appeared to be part of a wider, relentless crackdown on Rwandan refugees and dissidents and comes eight months after the kidnapping in Nairobi of another high profile Rwandan asylum seeker.In November suspected Rwandan agents seized Emile Gafirita, a former Tutsi soldier due to testify against Kagame in a French inquiry into the 1994 downing of a plane carrying the former Rwandan president, an incident that sparked the 1994 genocide.In a series of interviews with this journalist, family and lawyers say that a group of armed men seized Ntirugiribambe on June 23 and forced him at gunpoint into a car in front of witnesses on the street. Kenyan police have acknowledged the kidnapping occurred but have refused official comment on the case, pending an investigation.However a Kenyan police officer said the Rwandan embassy in Nairobi would be in a position to provide details on Ntirugiribambe's disappearance."The Rwandan embassy would be able to give you that information. It would be better to call them," the officer, requesting anonymity, told Digital Journal.Sources close to intelligence in Rwanda said Rwandan government agents were indeed behind the abduction.One of the sources told Digital Journal that Ntirugiribambe' kidnapping was facilitated by Lt Col James Burabyo, a military attaché at the Rwandan embassy in neighboring Uganda, under the instructions of Jack Nziza. Nziza is a notorious figure that has worked in Rwandan intelligence for decades and played a crucial role in killing, abducting and torturing perceived opponents of Kagame. Rwanda's external intelligence chief, Francis Mutiganda, was also allegedly involved in organizing the abduction, the sources indicated.Lt Colonel Mutiganda is a much-feared individual who recently worked in UN peacekeeping before returning home to oversee the country's external intelligence, a branch long suspected of carrying out murderous operations abroad in conjunction with Rwandan embassies.A UN officer who worked closely with Mutiganda said the UN department of peacekeeping DPKO failed to properly vet the Rwandan colonel before hiring him and only became aware after the fact that he had allegedly directed a killing squad in Rwanda. The UN wrote an internal report on Mutiganda's criminal record following his appointment as deputy chief of DPKO's military planning services.Despite the report, DPKO was ultimately unwilling to fire Mutiganda because Rwanda exerted undue influence at the United Nations as a result of its troop contributions to peacekeeping operations, the UN officer explained.Mutiganda was also accused of threatening colleagues at DPKO. "I can tell you that a German Waffen-SS officer looks a Kindergarten cop compared to Francis Mutiganda," the UN official told Digital Journal.Mutiganda and Nziza work under the authority of an umbrella spy agency in Rwanda called the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS). The head of NISS, Lt General Karenzi Karake, was arrested in London last month on a European arrest warrant issued by a Spanish court invoking universal jurisdiction. Karake now faces possible extradition to Spain for having allegedly organized the murders of three Spanish nationals in the late 1990s in Rwanda. He also is accused of having ordered large-scale massacres of Hutu civilians following the genocide.Jean Chrystostome Ntirugiribambe's daughter said her father's kidnapping had plunged the family into a state of anguish, following the recent death of their mother."It's been so hard to deal with. We are very worried," she said in an interview. The daughter said Kenyan police had conceded that a police officer in Mombasa, Kenya's second-largest city, appeared to have played a role in the kidnapping.Rwandan agents have often been accused of bribing local police to assist in their operations.Lawyer Christopher Black described Ntirugiribambe as an "intelligent, self-effacing, gentle man," and a vital member of his legal team that had secured the full acquittal at the ICTR of General Augustin Ndindiliyimana in 2014.Another colleague said Ntirigiribambe had been recently considered for a security job with the United Nations in Burundi, but that Rwanda had allegedly attempted to sabotage his candidacy, as election-related violence escalated and tensions flared along the Rwanda-Burundi border.Meanwhile the president of the Association of Defense Attorneys at the ICTR, John Philpot contacted Kenya's attorney general on Friday to express grave concern over the abduction.Philpot, a Montreal lawyer, said that "Rwanda has become an outlaw state by committing crimes of murder, assault or kidnapping in Kenya, Belgium, Canada, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda to mention a few."Rwanda was roundly criticized last year following the assassination of Kagame's former colleague, ex spymaster Patrick Karegeya. Karegeya broke with the regime in 2007 and fled to South Africa to help set up an opposition party. On New Year's Day 2014, he was found strangled in a Johannesburg hotel room. Diplomats from the Rwandan embassy in South Africa were later expelled.Rarely do disappearances and kidnappings of Rwandan dissidents garner international attention, however. In August 2014, a Rwandan human rights activist named Emmanuel Munyaruguru who holds Norwegian citizenship quietly went missing in Uganda after traveling to a refugee camp in Nakivale and has not been seen since.In October 2013, Rwandan agents assisted by Ugandan police kidnapped Kagame's former bodyguard Joel Mutabazi from a UN safe house in Kampala. The kidnappers also seized Mutabazi's younger brother Jackson Kalemera during the operation, brought him to Rwanda and tried to force him to testify in a trial against his brother. Family members in Uganda have had no news of Jackson for months and fear he has been killed. More recently, Rwanda has been accused of trying to persuade police forces and governments in Africa to deport a number of high profile Rwandan refugees who are activists or survivors of massacres by Kagame's troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).In May 2015, police in Brazzaville arrested a Rwandan refugee activist named Jean Leonard Mbarusha, claiming to be acting on an Interpol alert. According to the refugee's family, police later said they were detaining him because of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). However no arrest warrants for Mbarusha have been issued by either Interpol in Lyon or the ICC in The Hague.Nor was Mbarusha investigated by the ICTR or Rwanda's traditional Gacaca courts, his supporters say.When contacted by Digital Journal, Congolese police could not explain why Mbarusha was being detained. Officer Lt. Jean Marie Ntsinda said the case was being handled by Congo's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, whose officials subsequently met with Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo in Brazzaville.In letters obtained by this journalist from his family, Mbarusha said that Congolese police have tortured him in jail. He also explained that he is Hutu refugee survivor of killings by Kagame's troops during the 1996-97 invasion of the DRC .In 2010, a UN report concluded that Kagame's army committed crimes against humanity and possibly genocide against Hutu civilians in the DRC jungle.
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En l'espace de quelques heures, en moins de 24 heures, je viens de lire 3 postings différents, provenant d'autant de membres différents, qui pointent vers la défaillance du système d'éducation au Rwanda. Certains surnomment ironiquement les diplômes générés par ce système "Merci Kagame"! Rares sont les écoles, fussent-elles du tiers-monde, où les étudiants à la fin de leurs études seraient incapables de fonctionner dans d'autres écoles à l'étranger. Pourtant c'est la triste réalité actuelle au Rwanda. Pour ceux qui connaissent le fonctionnement des Nations-Unies, il est grand temps de dépêcher sur place un rapporteur spécial... L'UNESCO peut-être! Sibomana Jean Bosco. *DHR* BBC: Iyumvire uburyo Kagame na FPR bazambije uburezi mu Rwanda kuburyo ababyeyi bifite bahitamo kohereza abana babo hanze Libellés : Forums Peter Rwagasabo - 29 janv. à rwagasabo, (bcc:Democrac...
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...
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...
MASS KILLINGS OF HUTU BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER 1994 IN RWANDA, DRC AND UGANDA INTRODUCTION TO PART 2 Part 1 established the assassination of President Habyarimana, the Bruguière and Spanish investigations, Kagame's responsibility for starting the war, the Kigali massacres, challenges to the "genocide against the Tutsi only" narrative, and the need for UN framework revision. Part 2 documents specific mass killings of Hutu populations that have been systematically erased from history: the Kibeho massacre of 1995, the Byumba Stadium massacre of 1994, the hunting and slaughter of Hutu refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo from 1996 to 1997, killings in Uganda, and the pattern of political assassinations and property seizures. 2. THE KIBEHO MASSACRE (22 APRIL 1995) 2.1 The Camp and Its Population By April 1995, the Kibeho internally displaced persons camp in Gikongoro prefecture southwestern Rwanda held between 80,000 and 100,000...
http://www.veritasinfo.fr/m/article-122363461.html Itangazo ry'inama yahuje amashyaka i Buruseli kuwa 01/02/2014 Nk'uko byari biteganyijwe, kuri uyu wa gatandatu tariki ya 01/02/2014, i Buruseli mu Bubiligi hateraniye inama y'amashyaka atavuga rumwe n'ubutegetsi bwa Perezida Paul Kagame. Ku mashyaka icumi yari yatumiwe, ayabonetse mu nama ni atandatu (60%), ari yo : 1. Forces Démocratiques Unifiées (FDU-Inkingi) ; 2. Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda (FDLR) ; 3. Pacte Démocratique du Peuple (PDP-Imanzi) ; 4. Parti pour la Démocratie au Rwanda (PDR-Ihumure) ; 5. Parti Social (PS-Imberakuri) ; 6. Rwandan Dream Initiative (RDI-Rwanda Rwiza). Ihuriro FCLR - Ubumwe naryo ryari rihagarariwe muri iyo nama. Mu gutangira inama, abayijemo batoye umuyobozi wayo. Bamaze gusuzuma no kwemeza umurongo w'ibyigwa, bemeje ko muri iki gihe, ubufatanye bw'amashyaka ya opposition ari ngombwa cyane ...
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...
Comment Paul Kagame utilise la stratégie diplomatique de « l’autruche » comme feu vert pour poursuivre la guerre du Rwanda en RDC Le but de cet article est d’exposer une stratégie délibérée et systématique : la pratique, poursuivie depuis des années par Paul Kagame, consistant à créer des événements — dîners diplomatiques, réunions du parti FPR, commémorations du génocide, forums internationaux d’affaires et interventions devant le Bureau Politique du FPR — auxquels il invite des ambassadeurs étrangers ainsi que l’élite mondiale des affaires et de la politique dans un seul but : expliquer, justifier et défendre l’invasion militaire de la République démocratique du Congo par le Rwanda. Tous ceux qui suivent cette région connaissent désormais cette stratégie. Le même récit. Les mêmes arguments. La même défiance. Lors d’un événement, il dit à l’administration Trump d’aller au diable. Lors du suivant, il affirme que ceux qui le sanctionnent quitteront le pouvoir tandis que lui restera. Lor...
Le 30 juin 2026, pour la première fois en cinquante-six ans d'existence de l'Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, les candidats au poste de Secrétaire général ont été auditionnés publiquement devant les ministres des Affaires étrangères des 53 États membres de plein droit, réunis en Conférence ministérielle extraordinaire à Paris. Parmi les quatre prétendants au mandat 2027-2030, qui sera attribué par les chefs d'État au XXe Sommet de la Francophonie à Phnom Penh les 15 et 16 novembre 2026, figure un profil inédit : Dacian Cioloș, ancien Premier ministre de Roumanie, ancien commissaire européen à l'Agriculture et ancien président du groupe Renew au Parlement européen, seul candidat non africain de la course. Cet article, premier d'une série de cinq consacrée aux auditions, analyse la prestation de M. Cioloș sur huit axes : la vision, l'innovation, le développement des communautés locales, la promotion de la langue française, les conflits et la s...
La francophonie utile à l'épreuve des projets concrets Conseillère à la présidence mauritanienne, forte d'une longue expérience auprès de cinq chefs d'État successifs de son pays, Coumba Bâ porte la candidature de la Mauritanie au poste de Secrétaire général de la Francophonie, dont le titulaire du mandat 2027-2030 sera désigné par les chefs d'État au XXe Sommet de la Francophonie, prévu à Phnom Penh les 15 et 16 novembre 2026. Son audition publique du 30 juin 2026 à Paris, devant les ministres des Affaires étrangères des 53 États membres de plein droit, reposait sur un positionnement singulier : celui d'un pays carrefour, à la fois africain, arabe et sahélien, présenté comme un pont possible vers les États qui ont quitté l'organisation. Cet article, quatrième d'une série de cinq consacrée aux auditions, analyse sa prestation sur huit axes : la vision, l'innovation, le développement des communautés locales, la promotion de la langue française, les confli...
La refondation proclamée, l'architecture manquante Fille de Patrice Lumumba et ancienne ministre congolaise, Juliana Lumumba porte la candidature de la République démocratique du Congo au poste de Secrétaire général de la Francophonie, dont le titulaire du mandat 2027-2030 sera désigné par les chefs d'État au XXe Sommet de la Francophonie, prévu à Phnom Penh les 15 et 16 novembre 2026. Son audition publique du 30 juin 2026 à Paris, devant les ministres des Affaires étrangères des 53 États membres de plein droit, était particulièrement attendue : sa candidature incarne à la fois le rééquilibrage africain de l'organisation et le face-à-face diplomatique entre Kinshasa et Kigali, dont l'élection est devenue l'un des théâtres. Cet article, deuxième d'une série de cinq consacrée aux auditions, analyse sa prestation sur huit axes : la vision, l'innovation, le développement des communautés locales, la promotion de la langue française, les conflits et la sécurité en...
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.
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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.
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