Spain has once again issued arrest warrants for a prominent Rwandan opposition figure in exile, accusing him of war crimes committed during his time under President Paul Kagame’s rule, in a case that has challenged the limits of international justice for nearly 20 years.
In a historic case of universal jurisdiction, Spain charged 40 senior military officials of the ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) in 2008 with genocide, crimes against humanity, and terrorism, linked to atrocities committed during and after the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
The case originally revolved around the murders of nine Spanish nationals in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, but it later expanded to include widespread war crimes against thousands of Rwandan and Congolese civilians.
Despite the indictments, none of the accused officials have been extradited to face trial in Spain, largely because the Rwandan leadership, including President Kagame, has long enjoyed international backing and political protection since taking power.
Still, Spanish prosecutors and judges have pressed on with their legal campaign, relying on extraterritorial jurisdiction to hold Rwandan military leaders accountable.
In July 2025, Spanish Judge José Luis Calama reissued both international and European arrest warrants for Kayumba Nyamwasa, citing his role in the killings of several Spanish aid workers and a priest, as well as his involvement in wider acts of violence in Rwanda and Congo since the 1990s.
General Nyamwasa, once a close ally of Kagame and a founding member of the RPF, fled to South Africa in 2010 after a fallout with the regime. His refugee status was revoked in 2017 over accusations of serious war crimes, and he has survived several assassination attempts allegedly orchestrated by Rwandan agents.
A former military intelligence chief and defence head, Nyamwasa was a key figure in the RPF’s operations when Rwandan troops were accused of committing gruesome crimes in Congo, crimes that continue to cast a long shadow over the country’s legacy of justice.
