Chad’s former dictator sentenced to life for war crimes

World Today

Hissene Habre in courtIn court, Chad’s former dictator Hissene Habre raises his hand after being sentenced to life in prison for crimes against humanity, in Dakar, Senegal, Monday, May 30, 2016. (AP Photo/Carley Petesch)

Chad’s former dictator Hissene Habre was found guilty on Monday and sentenced to life imprisonment for abuses during his time in power.

CCTV’s Clementine Logan has more on this historic trial.
Follow Clementine Logan on Twitter @ClemLogan

Cheers and tears from Habre’s former prisoners greeted the verdict of the judge at the end of the trial in the Senegalese capital.

Habre’s trial by the Extraordinary African Chambers in Dakar began in July last year.

It was the first trial in which the courts of one country prosecuted the former ruler of another for alleged human rights crimes.

Habre was convicted of being responsible for thousands of deaths and tortures in prisons during his rule from 1982 to 1990.

A 1992, the Chadian Truth Commission accused his government of systematic torture.

It said that 40,000 people had died during his rule, and placed particular blame on his political police force.

The ex-dictator, who has lived in Dakar since fleeing Chad in 1990, denounced his trial as being politically motivated.

He and his supporters disrupted proceedings several times with shouting and singing.

Habre refused legal representation, but the court did appoint him Senegalese lawyers.