Ex-Chad leader re-arrested in Senegal

DAKAR, Senegal, Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Hours after his release from jail, Senegal re-arrested the ousted president of Chad Saturday on charges of political killings and torture.

Hissene Habre, 63, was arrested at his home in Dakar, hours after an appeals court ruled it did not have the jurisdiction to decide whether to extradite him to Belgium to face a trial.

He denies the accusations his administration was responsible for 40,000 political killings and 200,000 cases of torture under his rule from 1982 to 1990, the BBC said.

Rights activists said Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade could still decide to send Habre abroad for trial. Habre's alleged victims filed complaints under Belgium's universal jurisdiction law, which allows Brussels judges to prosecute human rights offences anywhere.

One of his Senegalese lawyers, Doudou Ndoye, told Voice of America because as Habre is a former head of state, he should be treated as such, and not as a common criminal.