WASHINGTON, May 20 (UPI) -- The conviction of a mastermind behind the Rwandan genocide in 1994 shows justice reaches the highest levels of leadership, the U.S. State Department said.
Augustin Bizimungu was convicted this week by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and sentenced to 30 years in jail for genocide and crimes against humanity.
The Hutu leader was found to have trained troops and militiamen to kill members of the rival Tutsi clan. He was arrested in 2002 in Angola.
"The United States welcomes the ruling as an important step in providing justice and accountability for the Rwandan people and the international community," the State Department said. "The conviction of Mr. Bizimungu, in particular, shows that even those at the highest levels of military leadership are not immune from prosecution in the face of such grave atrocities."
Bizimungu took over as chief of the Rwandan army after army Chief of Staff Deogratias Nsabimana was killed in the same 1994 plane crash in which Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana died.
The plane crash was said to have sparked the genocide. Three others were sentenced for their roles in the massacre, though the State Department notes 10 fugitives remain at large.
