This file photo taken on July 20, 2015 shows former Chadian dictator Hissene Habre escorted by prison guards into the courtroom for the first proceedings of his trial by the Extraordinary African Chambers in Dakar.SEYLLOU/AFP / Getty Images
In a landmark case for African justice, a former dictator of Chad has been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for atrocities including murder, torture and rape.
Hissène Habré, who ruled Chad from 1982 to 1990, remained expressionless behind sunglasses and a white turban as the judges read the guilty verdict in a courtroom in Dakar, the capital of Senegal. Many of his victims cheered, hugged and wept.
It was the first victory for the principal of "universal jurisdiction" for international crimes in an African court. The horrific crimes were committed in Chad, but the trial was held in Senegal with the support of the African Union.
The trial is seen as a potential model for future justice in Africa, where dictators and warlords have often escaped justice. A handful of African cases have been taken to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, but many Africans see the ICC as a Western-dominated institution that doesn't provide fairness to Africa.
The verdict was also the first time anywhere in the world that a former president has been convicted by the courts of another country for crimes against humanity.
Despite long delays in the case while Mr. Habré lived freely for two decades in a luxurious villa in a Dakar suburb, the trial finally brought justice for the victims of the U.S.-backed dictator, whose regime killed an estimated 40,000 people and tortured 200,000.
"Today will be carved into history as the day that a band of unrelenting survivors brought their dictator to justice," said Reed Brody, a Human Rights Watch activist who has been working to help the Chadian victims for the past 17 years.
"Habré's conviction for these horrific crimes after 25 years is a huge victory for his Chadian victims, without whose tenacity this trial never would have happened," he said in a statement on Monday.
"This verdict sends a powerful message that the days when tyrants could brutalize their people, pillage their treasury and escape abroad to a life of luxury are coming to an end."
The historic trial, which began last September, heard testimony from 69 victims, 23 witnesses and 10 expert witnesses. They gave graphic details of executions and torture by Mr. Habré's regime, including waterboarding and electric shocks. The court concluded that Mr. Habré directly ordered many of the atrocities, had full control of the security forces that committed the murders, and even personally participated in torture and interrogation sessions.
The verdict by the special court "demonstrates that when there is enough political will, states can work together effectively to end impunity in even the most entrenched situations," said a statement by Gaetan Mootoo, a West Africa researcher for Amnesty International.
"It is moments like these that other victims around the world can draw on in darker times when justice appears beyond reach. It will nourish them with hope and give them strength to fight for what is right. This landmark decision should also provide impetus to the African Union or individual African states to replicate such efforts to deliver justice in other countries in the continent."
Mr. Habré refused to recognize the court's jurisdiction. On the first day of the trial, he had to be dragged into the courtroom by policemen as he struggled and screamed furiously. He tried to disrupt the reading of the indictment, shouting "lies" and "shut up, shut up" as the charges were read.
The 73-year-old ex-dictator remained silent during the verdict on Monday. But as police led him away from the court building, he pumped his fist and shouted an anti-France slogan to his supporters.
His victims, who had waited three decades for justice, cheered jubilantly and flung their arms in the air when the verdict was given.
In Chad, meanwhile, more than 200 victims of Mr. Habré's regime watched the verdict on television. They reportedly screamed with joy when the verdict was read.
Mr. Habré will serve his life sentence in a prison near Dakar. His lawyers said he will appeal the verdict.
The special court, led by a judge from Burkina Faso and two Senegalese judges, found that Mr. Habré was guilty of crimes against humanity, both personally and as the commander of those who killed and tortured.
He was also found guilty of raping a female detainee, Khadidja Hassan, who testified in court about the rape. It is the first time in history that an international court has convicted a former head of state for personally committing rape.
During his rule in the 1980s, Mr. Habré was an ally of then-U.S. president Ronald Reagan, and his military was secretly armed and trained by the United States as part of a U.S. campaign against Libyan forces. But on Monday, the United States said it welcomed the verdict against its former ally, and it praised the courage of the victims who testified.
"This is also an opportunity for the United States to reflect on, and learn from, our own connection with past events in Chad," said a statement by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.
He said the verdict was "a landmark in the global fight against impunity for atrocities."
Geoffrey York