The government has welcomed the decision by the Norwegian Supreme Court to uphold a ruling that Genocide suspect Eugene Nkuranyabahizi, 42, be extradited to face trial for his role in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

In a statement, issued yesterday, Rwanda Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA) said the ruling was testimony to the Nordic country’s commitment to ensure that genocidaires get their day in court.

"The NPPA lauds this great development in the fight against impunity for suspected perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi still at large. In particular, NPPA lauds the justice sector of Norway for joining Rwanda in the fight against impunity by either extraditing or prosecuting suspects found on Norwegian territory,” the statement, signed by Prosecution spokesperson Alain Mukuralinda, reads in part.

Nkuranyabahizi has lived in Norway since 1999. He was arrested in May 2013 following an indictment sent to authorities by the Rwandan judiciary.

He is accused of participating in the massacre of Tutsi in the former Nyakizu commune, currently Nyabihu and Nyanza districts, where he served as a teacher.

Nkuranyabahizi is linked to several killings in Nkakwa, Kibangu, Cyahinda and around the Kanyaru River area. He is particularly accused of being responsible for the massacre of 7,500 Tutsi.

Before and during the Genocide, he was a member of the MDR-Power, an extremist political party that planned and executed the pogrom.

Nkuranyabahizi is also accused of working with the Interahamwe militia to waylay and murder several Tutsi who were attempting to cross the border to Burundi.

Reports from Oslo indicate that during the supreme court ruling, the four judges unanimously upheld two lower court decisions concluding that there was sufficient ground for Nkuranyabahizi’s extradition.

They said as part of the case, the courts heard testimony from witnesses compiled by Norwegian investigators who had visited Rwanda.

The court ruling said the accused was implicated in coordinating attacks by Interahamwe militia that targeted Tutsi at the Akanyaru River as they tried to flee to neighbouring Burundi, and an attack on people who had sought refuge in a church in Cyahinda.

However, Nkuranyabahizi has denied his role in the Genocide. In 2005, he applied for Norwegian citizenship but in vain because Norwegian authorities had been alerted about his alleged involvement in the Genocide.

In May 2013, he was remanded into custody in Norway, and later that year, Rwanda requested his extradition.

If Nkuranyabahizi is extradited, he will be the second Genocide suspect extradition from Norway after Charles Bandora in 2013.

Bandora’s case, before the Specialised Chamber for International Crimes of the High Court, has concluded and awaits a ruling set for May 15.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw