This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-22490408
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Guatemala's Rios Montt found guilty of genocide | Guatemala's Rios Montt found guilty of genocide |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A court in Guatemala has found former military leader Efrain Rios Montt guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity. | A court in Guatemala has found former military leader Efrain Rios Montt guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity. |
| A three-judge tribunal sentenced the 86-year-old to 80 years in prison. | |
| Rios Montt was convicted of ordering the deaths of 1,771 people of the Ixil Maya ethnic group during his time in office in 1982 and 1983. | Rios Montt was convicted of ordering the deaths of 1,771 people of the Ixil Maya ethnic group during his time in office in 1982 and 1983. |
| Survivors described horrific abuses committed by the army against those suspected of aiding left-wing rebels. | Survivors described horrific abuses committed by the army against those suspected of aiding left-wing rebels. |
| The retired general had denied the charges, saying he neither knew of nor ordered the massacres while in power. | The retired general had denied the charges, saying he neither knew of nor ordered the massacres while in power. |
| He is expected to appeal against the court's decision. | He is expected to appeal against the court's decision. |
| It is the first time a former head of state had been found guilty of genocide by a court in his or her own country. | |
| Other genocide convictions have been handed down by international courts. | |
| Relatives and indigenous leaders cheered when the sentence was read out by Judge Jazmin Barrios. | |
| Rios Montt was sentenced to 50 years for genocide and 30 years for crimes against humanity. | |
| "The Ixils were considered public enemies of the state and were also victims of racism, considered an inferior race," Judge Barrios said. | |
| "The violent acts against the Ixils were not spontaneous. They were planned beforehand." | |
| During the nearly two-month trial, dozens of victims gave harrowing testimony about atrocities committed by soldiers. | |
| An estimated 200,000 people were killed in Guatemala's 1960-1996 civil war, the vast majority of them indigenous Mayans. | |
| Prosecutors said Rios Montt presided over the war's bloodiest phase. They said he turned a blind eye as soldiers used rape, torture and arson against those suspected of supporting leftist rebels. |