Former Chad leader dragged into war crimes trial

Chad's former dictator Hissene Habre was forcibly brought into court and held down by masked security officers at the resumption of his trial in Senegal for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The 72 year old is accused of being responsible for the deaths of 40,000 Chadians during his 1982-1990 rule. Mr Habre has refused to recognise the African Union backed court and repeatedly disrupted proceedings. He shouted abuse at court officials throughout Monday’s proceedings, yelling "Shut up! Shut up!" at the court clerk as his indictment was read.

Reed Brody, a counsel at Human Rights Watch said,

“Hissene Habre can make all the noise all he wants, but he doesn’t get to decide whether he should be tried, or if the victims get justice".

See more from the BBC here, Reuters here and AFP here.

 

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