French appeals court reopens case against Rwanda's former first lady

France’s Paris Court of Appeal on Wednesday ruled that investigations should resume against Rwanda’s former first lady for her alleged “complicity in genocide”.

Last year, a lower court dismissed charges that Agathe Habyarimana had played a role in the 1994 genocide, saying there was “insufficient evidence” against her.

Now in her late 80s, she has lived in France since being evacuated by French paratroopers in the early days of the killing spree.

It was triggered by the assassination of her husband, the former Hutu president of Rwanda, Juvénal Habyarimana.

Violence, over a period of a 100 days, saw, between 800,000 and a million Tutsis and moderate Hutus brutally killed – mainly by Hutus.

The ex-first lady has been under investigation since 2008, with plaintiffs claiming she headed the “Akazu” or inner circle of Hutu power.

They allege she played an active role in planning and carrying out the massacres, drawing up lists of names of those to be executed.

Her lawyer has described the decision to re-open the case as “incomprehensible” saying there was no evidence to seriously support these claims.