Paul Rusesabagina, fierce opponent of Rwandan President Paul Kagame and hero of the film "Hotel Rwanda", arrived in the United States after his release Friday and his passage through Qatar, announced Wednesday, March 29 the White House.

"I am delighted to welcome Paul Rusesabagina to the United States. We are pleased to have him back on American soil, and reunited with his family and friends who have been waiting for this day for a long time," said Jake Sullivan, National Security Advisor. "I am grateful to those with whom we have worked closely within the Rwandan government to make this possible," he added.

After more than 900 days in prison, Paul Rusesabagina was released under an agreement between the U.S. and Rwandan governments with the help of Qatar, where he had arrived Monday before leaving for the United States.

Fierce opponent of Kagame

Formerly a hotel manager in the Rwandan capital, Paul Rusesagabina saved hundreds of people during the genocide of the Tutsi in 1994. His story was made famous by the film "Hotel Rwanda", released in 2004. He later became a staunch opponent of President Paul Kagame, and created his own political party.

Talks on his release began in late 2022 and a breakthrough came last week during talks between President Kagame and the Emir of Qatar, a source familiar with the matter said.

Paul Rusesabagina had been living in exile in the United States and Belgium since 1996, before being arrested in Kigali in 2020 in murky circumstances, when he got off a plane he thought was bound for Burundi.

The opponent was tried from February to July 2021 on nine charges, including "terrorism", for attacks carried out by the FLN, an organization classified as terrorist by Kigali, which had left nine dead in 2018 and 2019. Paul Rusesabagina has admitted to helping found the Rwandan Movement for Democratic Change (MRCD) in 2017, of which the FLN is considered the armed wing, but has always denied any involvement in the attacks.

In an October 2022 letter published Friday by the government, he assured that he would now stay away from political life.

With AFP

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