Netherlands arrests Genocide suspect

NETHERLANDS - Authorities in the Netherlands yesterday arrested a woman in a village south of the country on suspicion of involvement in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Yvonne Ntacyobatabara, 63, married to Augustin Basebya is said to have led a group of militias who killed Tutsis in Gikondo, Nyenyeri area in the Genocide. She was a member of the extremist political party, Coalition for the Defence of the Republic (CDR). Ntacyobatabara was sentenced in absentia to life by a Gacaca Court in Gikondo. She moved to the Netherlands in 1998 to reunite with her family and has held Dutch citizenship since 2004.According to reports, Dutch police investigating the case questioned witnesses in Gikondo where she lived at the time of the Genocide. Investigations into her case have been going on for a year now. She is the second person in the Netherlands to be arrested for Genocide. Her husband, a former Member of Parliament, is also being investigated. The arrest comes at a time when the Netherlands and Rwanda are discussing the possibility of signing an extradition treaty. The Dutch Justice Minister, Ernst Hirsch Ballin who has been in the country on an official visit, has agreed to foster cooperation with his Rwandan counterpart, Tharcisse Karugarama. Ends

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Netherlands arrests Genocide suspect