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Simba told civilians to hunt Tutsis and break their heads, witness saysBy Hirondelle News Agency A former senior Rwandan army officer and genocide suspect, Colonel Aloys Simba, asked civilians to hunt Tutsis from the bushes and "break their heads" three weeks before the death of former President Juvenal Habyarimana in 1994, a prosecution witness told the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda on Wednesday. The third prosecution witness recalled that Simba addressed a public meeting at Rukondo commune in Gikongoro prefecture (Southern Rwanda), asking the population to prepare themselves to face the Inyenzi. Inyenzi, which means "cockroach" was a derogatory word used to refer to Tutsis. The witness quoted the accused as having said, "When the Inyenzi come back to Rwanda, you should take your weapons, chase away all the snakes from the bushes and break their heads". The meeting was attended by people from Rukondo and Karama communes. The witness identified only as ALS to keep her identity secret, further testified that Simba called on the members of the population to contribute funds to buy arms for the Rwandan army. Simba also called on the population to flee Rwanda because those who remained behind "would see the war between elephants". The witness added that when the massacres of Tutsis began after Habyarimana’s death on April 6th, she realised that Simba’s prediction had occurred. Simba, 62, is charged with four counts of genocide and crimes against humanity for the massacres of Tutsis in two provinces in southern Rwanda: Gikongoro (his native province) and Butare. He has denied the charges. The accused was arrested in Senegal on November 27, 2001 and transferred to Arusha on March 11 2002. The accused is represented by lawyers Sadikou Alao (Benin) and Beth Lyons (USA) while Jonathan Moses (New Zealand) and Richard Karegyesa (Uganda) are prosecuting. Simba’s trial is before Trial Chamber One of the ICTR where Judge Erik Mose (Norway) is presiding, assisted by Judge Sergei Alekseevich Egorov (Russia) and Judge Charles Michael Dennis Byron (St Kitts and Nevis). The trial began on August 30th 2004.
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