Rwanda genocide tribunal begins

ARUSHA, Tanzania, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- Prosecutors at the U.N. tribunal on the Rwandan genocide began their case against a former military officer allegedly an architect of the mass killings.

Lt. Col. Ephrem Setako, 55, pleaded innocent to six counts of genocide, complicity in genocide, crimes against humanity and violations of the Geneva Conventions and its Additional Protocols, the United Nations said Tuesday in a news release.

During opening statements Monday in Arusha, Tanzania, base for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, prosecutors said they would offer 25 witnesses to testify that Setako was one of the principal planners and executors of the genocide.

An estimated 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed during a 100-day period starting in April 1994.