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| Hissene Habre: Trial of Chad's ex-leader to resume | Hissene Habre: Trial of Chad's ex-leader to resume |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| The war crimes trial of Chad's former President Hissene Habre is due to resume in Senegal's capital Dakar. | The war crimes trial of Chad's former President Hissene Habre is due to resume in Senegal's capital Dakar. |
| Mr Habre is accused of ordering the killing of 40,000 people during his rule in the 1980s, charges which he denies. | |
| The trial adjourned in July after Mr Habre and his lawyers refused to speak to the court. | |
| The trial marks the first time one African country has prosecuted the former leader of another. | The trial marks the first time one African country has prosecuted the former leader of another. |
| If he refuses to recognise his newly appointed legal team, the judge will have to decide whether to adjourn proceedings again or try Mr Habre against his will, reports BBC West Africa correspondent Thomas Fessy, who is in court. | |
| With many Africans denouncing the International Criminal Court as neo-colonial, this trial is considered a chance for the continent to show it can hold its leaders to account, our correspondent adds. | |
| Habre at a glance: | |
| Battle to bring Habre to court | Battle to bring Habre to court |
| Profile: Hissene Habre | Profile: Hissene Habre |
| The trial follows a 25-year campaign to bring him to justice. | |
| Many of Mr Habre's alleged victims have been calling for him to face justice since his overthrow and exile in Senegal in 1990. | |
| Parallels were later drawn with the attempts to get the former Chilean military leader Augusto Pinochet extradited and put on trial for crimes against humanity in Spain in 1998, leading him to to be called "Africa's Pinochet". | |
| A Chadian truth commission found in 1992 that the Habre regime was responsible for 40,000 deaths and disappearances. | A Chadian truth commission found in 1992 that the Habre regime was responsible for 40,000 deaths and disappearances. |
| In 2005, a court in Belgium issued a warrant for his arrest, claiming universal jurisdiction but, after Senegal referred the issue to the African Union, the AU asked Senegal to try Mr Habre "on behalf of Africa". | In 2005, a court in Belgium issued a warrant for his arrest, claiming universal jurisdiction but, after Senegal referred the issue to the African Union, the AU asked Senegal to try Mr Habre "on behalf of Africa". |