France blocks Rwanda extradition

A Paris appeals court has rejected an extradition request for a man accused of a role in Rwanda's 1994 genocide.

A Rwandan court sentenced Isaac Kamali in his absence in 2003 to death for his alleged participation in the massacre.

Mr Kamali, a mathematics professor, who also holds French nationality, was detained at a Paris airport in 2007.

France and Rwanda have long wrangled over blame for the 1994 genocide when some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered in just 100 days.

Mr Kamali's lawyer, Jean-Marie Biju-Duval, told AP news agency the court's decision was in line with a recommendation by prosecutors that his client not be sent back to his native Rwanda.

But Alain Gauthier, a campaigner for genocide justice in France, accused French judicial authorities of being reluctant to try Mr Kamali and other suspects linked to the slaughter in Rwanda living in France.

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