Bail denied for Khmer Rouge head

Nuon Chea was Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot's deputy

A UN-backed tribunal has rejected an appeal for bail from the Khmer Rouge's most senior surviving member.

Judges ruled that Nuon Chea, deputy to the group's leader Pol Pot, must remain in custody ahead of his trial.

The octogenarian faces charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, relating to the Khmer Rouge's four-year rule in the 1970s.

More than one million Cambodians are believed to have died under the brutal Maoist regime.

Nuon Chea, who is thought to have been the ideological driving force behind the regime, denies committing any crime.

He had argued that he was not a flight risk and said he would not try to influence potential witnesses.

But the court in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, ruled that his detention should continue pending his trial, which is expected to take place later this year.

Nuon Chea is one of five former Khmer Rouge leaders currently being held by the court.

Bail has already been denied to Duch, the former head of the notorious Tuol Sleng prison where thousands of people were executed.

Also in custody are Ieng Sary, the former foreign minister, his wife Ieng Thirith, who was minister for social affairs, and Khieu Samphan, the former head of state.