Rwandan agents ‘in Zimbabwe’

Daily Nation, By KITSIPLE NYATHI, NATION Correspondent
Posted Tuesday, August 17 2010

Rwanda recently deployed secret agents to Zimbabwe to pursue 1994 genocide suspects without informing Harare authorities provoking a potentially messy diplomatic row between the two countries.

There have been persistent reports that two genocide suspects, Charles Bandora and Protais Mpiranya are hiding in Zimbabwe.

Yesterday, a private radio station quoting unnamed sources said Mr Mpiranya, a former commander of the presidential guard accused of organising the killings of Rwandans from the Tutsi minority ethnic group, had been living in a town just outside Harare for close to 10 years.

He is the third most wanted man in connection with the genocide.

Radio VOP claimed he enjoys the protection of Zimbabwe’s army generals after he assisted them with intelligence during the DRC war that also sucked in armies from Rwanda and Uganda.

Zimbabwe says it does not have knowledge of any Rwandan fugitives hiding within its borders. Bandora is a Hutu accused of having worked closely with militants who carried out the genocide.

Rwanda has said it believes Bandora entered Zimbabwe from Malawi where he had been staying since the end of the genocide.

Later arrested in Norway

He was later arrested in Norway and is now facing genocide charges.

“In the recent past we complained about some African countries that do not cooperate in bringing genocide fugitives to book,” Rwanda’s prosecutor general Augustin Nkundabazungu was quoted as having said recently.

Zimbabwean authorities said they had no knowledge of an arrangement with Rwandan agents to pursue the fugitives.

The reports also came amid mounting reports of increasing tension between refugees from the Great Lakes region at the main refugee camp in Zimbabwe.

The southern African country recently expelled five Burundians following unrest at the Tongogara refugee camp following ethnic clashes.

Refugees from Burundi and Rwanda allegedly accuse each of having been behind the genocide that left close to a million Tutsis and moderate Hutus dead.