United States Secretary of State, Antony John Blinken, admits he will ask government of Rwanda to release Paul Rusesabagina who was sentenced to 25 years in prison for terrorism related crimes.
Blinken stated this in an interview with Romain Chanson of Radio France Internationale (RFI), this during a working visit in South Africa.
Chanson asked Blinken whether he is asking for release of a U.S resident detained in Rwanda. “In Rwanda, there is a U.S. resident who is being detained. He was sentenced to 25 years in jail. This is Paul Rusesabagina. He is known for having been the inspiration for the movie “Hotel Rwanda” but also for being an opponent of President Paul Kagame. Will you be asking for his release?”
And the Secretary of State who is having a working visit in Rwanda from this Wednesday replied with ‘Yes’. “Yes. In any case, alas, in quite a large number of countries around the world, there are U.S. citizens and U.S. residents who are unjustly detained. To me, this is a priority, wherever it may be, to try to work for their return back home in the United States.”
Paul Rusesabagina sencenced 25 years by Court of Appeal in April 2022. He was the political leader of FLN, an armed group which conducted several attacks in south-west of Rwanda in 2018 and 2019.
