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'Hotel Rwanda' hero Rusesabagina freed from Rwandan jail

WASHINGTON/KIGALI, (Reuters)

- Paul

Rusesabagina, who was portrayed as a hero in the film

"Hotel Rwanda," was released from a Rwandan prison on Friday, U.S. officials said, after his sentence was commuted following intense diplomacy by the

United States.

Rusesabagina, a U.S. permanent resident, was accompanied by a U.S. embassy official as he was moved from prison to the residence of Qatar’s ambassador in Kigali late on Friday, according to two senior Biden administration officials who briefed reporters in Washington.

Rusesabagina was sentenced in September 2021 to 25 years over his ties to a group opposed to Rwandan President Paul Kagame that has an armed wing.

The Rwandan government announced earlier on Friday it was commuting Rusesabagina's sentence.

U.S. President Joe Biden issued a statement welcoming Rusesabagina's release and thanking the governments of Rwanda and Qatar for making it possible.

Rusesabagina will remain in Rwanda for a couple of days before travelling to Doha and then to the United States, the officials said.

World News

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2023-03-25T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-03-25T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://epaper.stabroeknews.com/article/281543705174884

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