Paul Rusesabagina, an outspoken critic of Rwanda President Paul Kagame who was portrayed in the film Hotel Rwanda as a hero who saved the lives of more than a thousand people during the country’s 1994 genocide, has been arrested on terror charges, police announced Monday. Rusesabagina had been living in Belgium and the U.S. since 1996 and has not been formally charged in court, though there was an international arrest warrant for the 66-year-old that included several crimes, including terrorism, arson, kidnapping, and murder. Police say an investigation into Rusesabagina, who has been awarded numerous international honors including the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005, is ongoing. Actor Don Cheadle portrayed him in the Oscar-nominated 2004 film.
“Through international cooperation, the Rwanda Bureau of Investigation wants to inform the general public that Paul Rusesabagina has been arrested,” Rwandan police said in a statement Monday, according to the AP. “Rusesabagina is suspected to be the founder, leader, sponsor and member of violent, armed, extremist terror outfits including the Rwanda Movement for Democratic Change (MRCD) operating out of various places in the region and abroad.” Rusesabagina has been an outspoken critic of Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
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