Paul Rusesabagina, who saved hundreds of Rwandans during the genocide by sheltering them in the hotel he managed, and saw his story made into the Hollywood film ‘Hotel Rwanda’, has been arrested on terror related offenses, Rwandan authorities announced.
The country’s bureau of Investigation said in a Twitter statement that Rusesabagina was now in their custody after being arrested “through international cooperation.” It did not indicate which country helped them with the arrest.
An international warrant was issued for his arrest and he is currently in police custody in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital, said the Rwanda Investigation Bureau.
Rusesabagina, 66, is accused of being the “founder, leader and sponsor of violent, armed, extremist terror outfits,” the agency said.
Authorities in Belgium, where Rusesabagina has ties, told CNN he was not arrested in the country.
Belgium was “notified” Monday by Rwandan judiciary authorities of the arrest of Paul Rusesabagina, the spokesperson of the Belgian Federal Prosecutor Office, Eric Van Duyse, told CNN via email.
“To the best of our knowledge, he was not arrested in Belgium nor transferred from our country,” Van Duyse added.
His supporters, and Rusesabagina himself, have long maintained that he became a target of Paul Kagame’s government after sustained criticism of Kagame’s government and the conduct of the Rwandan Patriotic Front in ending the genocide in 1994.
Rusesabagina gained prominence during the 1994 Rwandan genocide for saving hundreds of lives.
Around 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed in the genocide, which was led by Hutu extremists.
At the time, he was a manager at the Milles Collines hotel where he hid and sheltered people in the luxury hotel.
