Militia leader arrest

German prosecutors have arrested two Rwandan men: 46-year-old Ignace Murwanashyaka and 48-year-old Straton Musoni, who are accused of issuing orders for crimes against humanity to be carried out against Congolese civilians. German prosecutors say the pair are the leader and deputy leader of the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda (FDLR), a Hutu rebel militia group, which has been waging a 15-year-long war against the Tutsi government in Rwanda. They were arrested on Tuesday in the city of Karlsruhe and near Stuttgart, where they have been living for months, despite a longstanding international warrant issued by their home country Rwanda.

Prosecutors said that after a year-long investigation, they had finally amassed enough evidence to warrant arresting the men.

"The accused are strongly suspected, as members of the foreign terrorist organisation FDLR, of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes," said German federal prosecutors in a statement.

As the head of the FDLR, Murwanashyaka has been the mastermind behind the violence and bloodshed committed by the FDLR in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is also accused of being the ringleader of a terrorist organization.

The paramilitary FDLR is estimated to have 5,000 to 6,000 fighters and, according to a statement by German prosecutors, its members are suspected of killing several hundred citizens, raping large numbers of women and plundering and burning several villages between January 2008 and July 2009.

While living in asylum in Germany, Murwanashyaka has remained at the helm of the FDLR's activites, issuing strategic orders to his top generals via satellite phone or email and regularly keeping tabs on the FDLR's activities.

Hard-pressed prosecution

The international community has known for years that Murwanashyaka had taken refuge in Germany and was even legally recognized as a refugee in this country. Attempts by Rwandan officials to extradite and prosecute him have so far been unsuccessful due to his German refugee status. In addition, Germany has been unwilling to extradite the militia leader because of concerns that the Rwandan judicial system would be incapable of holding a fair trial.

Rwanda has repeatedly voiced its outrage over the FDLR's continued use of Germany as a safe haven, despite a UN Security Council resolution imposing travel and financial restrictions on the group's leaders.

Rwanda's leading public prosecutor, Martin Ngoga, has continually stressed the importance of Murwanashyaka and his followers being brought to justice.

"He's the head of an armed rebel group that is responsible for killing countless innocent people - and which continues to do so," said Ngoga. "The FDLR is considered a terrorist organisation and it would be very bad if Berlin doesn't recognize that. We hope that the case is finally properly picked up the German authorities. The urgency to do so grows by the day."

Major German contribution

Germany's decision to arrest Murwanashyaka and his deputy head, several years after they have taken refuge in Germany, may come as a surprise but will undoubtedly meet with a positive response internationally.

The German-based Society for Threatened Peoples has welcomed the arrests as "Germany's most important contribution so far to ending mass murder and expulsions in Congo". However, the organisation criticized the length of time the German authorities had taken to react.

ft/AFP/AP/dpa

Editor: Susan Houlton