This archive report was first published on 21 October 2021.
On September 20, Paul Rusesabagina, the 'Hotel Rwanda' hero, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for terrorism and involvement in a rebel group blamed for deadly gun, grenade, and arson attacks in Rwanda in 2018 and 2019.
At least nine people were killed during the attacks, while others were left injured and property looted or destroyed.
Rusesabagina, a 67-year-old former hotelier credited with saving over 1,200 lives during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, could face life imprisonment if the prosecution wins the appeal.
The prosecution, which lodged its appeal on October 20, had previously expressed dissatisfaction with the 'lenient sentences' handed to some convicts, saying some charges had been dropped.
Moise Nkundabarashi, a lawyer representing Callixte Sankara, one of Rusesabagina's co-accused, confirmed that an appeal had been filed on October 18.
‘We have appealed against the sentence given to my client and some of the accusations,’ Mr Nkundabarashi said.
