'Hotel Rwanda' hero charged with terrorism

KIGALI, Rwanda -- A Rwandan court Monday charged Paul Rusesabagina, whose story inspired the film "Hotel Rwanda," with terrorism, complicity in murder and forming an armed rebel group.

Rusesabagina declined to respond to all 13 charges, saying some did not qualify as criminal offenses and that he had denied the accusations when questioned by Rwandan investigators.

The 66-year-old asked to be released on bail, citing poor health that has caused him to be taken to the hospital three times in the period he has been held in Rwanda.

"I request that I am given bail and I assure the court that I will not flee from justice," Rusesabagina said.

The court said it will rule on the bail application Thursday.

Rusesabagina, credited with saving more than 1,000 lives during Rwanda's 1994 genocide, appeared in handcuffs in Kagarama Court in the capital for a pretrial hearing, in which the prosecution requested court permission to continue detaining him until investigations are completed.

Neither his state-appointed lawyers nor the prosecution explained the circumstances under which Rusesabagina arrived in Kigali from Dubai at the end of August. He had traveled from the U.S. to Dubai and then mysteriously appeared in Rwanda. The Rwandan court said the suspect was arrested at Kigali International Airport, contradicting the earlier police version that he was arrested through "international cooperation."

When Rwandan President Paul Kagame spoke about the case on national broadcasting, he indicated that Rusesabagina may have been tricked into boarding a private plane in Dubai that took him to Rwanda.

Amnesty International on Monday urged Rwandan authorities to guarantee Rusesabagina his right to a fair trial.

"The lack of transparency around the arrest of Paul Rusesabagina and reports that he has been denied access to the lawyer hired by his family are red flags that cannot be ignored as the authorities prepare for his trial," said Deprose Muchena, Amnesty's director for East and Southern Africa.

Rusesabagina's daughter Carine Kanimba told The Associated Press that the family was not even aware he was to appear in court Monday as the lawyers didn't inform them. She said they learned of the court hearing through the media.

"This is a travesty of justice," Kanimba said of the hearing. Speaking from Belgium, she said her father was the victim of an abduction, disappearance and extraordinary rendition.

Rusesabagina became famous for protecting people as a hotel manager during Rwanda's 1994 genocide in which some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed. For his efforts he was awarded the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005.

But Rwandan authorities accuse him of supporting the armed wing of his opposition political platform, which has claimed responsibility for deadly attacks in Rwanda. Rusesabagina in the past has denied funding rebel groups and said he was being targeted over his criticism of Kagame's government and alleged rights abuses.

​​​​​Information for this article was contributed by Bishr Eltouni of The Associated Press.