A Belgian court has sentenced Seraphin Twarhirwa, a Rwandan former militia leader, to life in prison for his direct involvement in numerous murders and rapes during the 1994 genocide. 

The atrocities, committed by Hutu Interahamwe militiamen in Kigali, targeted Tutsis and moderate Hutus. 

Another defendant, Pierre Basabose, a former close associate of ex-President Juvenal Habyarimana, was also found guilty of “genocide” and “war crimes” for funding the militia. However, due to incurable senile dementia, the 76-year-old Basabose was spared jail for health reasons.

Both Twarhirwa and Basabose contested the accusations during the two-month trial, which marked the sixth in Belgium related to the 1994 Rwandan genocide. 

The sentencing underscores Belgium’s historical ties to Rwanda, as it ruled the region during the colonial period and has a significant Rwandan diaspora.

The genocide, triggered by the shooting down of Habyarimana’s plane on April 6, 1994, resulted in the brutal murder of an estimated 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus in a span of 100 days. 

The verdict in Belgium follows a similar ruling in France, where former doctor Sosthene Munyemana was sentenced to 24 years for his role in the genocide.

While lawyers for Twarhirwa and Basabose plan to appeal, the guilty verdict has been welcomed by Michele Hirsch, a lawyer representing victims’ relatives at the trial. 

“The judges considered that the mass rapes perpetrated by Twarhirwa were part of the genocide,” she said.

However, defense lawyer Vincent Lurquin raised concerns about the judicial cooperation between Belgium and the “authoritarian regime” of Rwandan President Paul Kagame.