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Sunday, July 19, 2009

DR Congo rebel leader presses Rwanda to free him



KINSHASA — Ex-Democratic Republic of Congo rebel chief Laurent Nkunda has asked Rwanda's president to free him after his arrest nearly six months ago, his family said on Friday.

Nkunda, also a former DR Congo general, "was recently authorised to meet his wife" but "his fundamental rights of being informed of the reasons for his arrest and detention ... are still being violated," his family said in a statement.

He has asked Rwandan President Paul Kagame to free him, it said, and will also soon file a Rwandan court request asking that he appear before a judge or be let go immediately, according to his family.

His January 22 arrest by Rwandan forces was a dramatic turnaround, with Rwanda accused only weeks earlier by the Democratic Republic of Congo of backing him.

Nkunda had claimed to be protecting Tutsis in eastern DR Congo from Rwandan rebels from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), some of whom participated in the 1994 genocide in neighbouring Rwanda.

He accused Kinshasa and pro-government Mai Mai militia of backing the Rwandan rebels, while the Congolese authorities in turn accused Kigali of backing Nkunda.

Copyright © 2009 AFP.

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