A man accused of participating in the 1994 Rwanda genocide has been extradited from Norway back to Rwanda, officials from both countries confirmed on Friday. Francois Gasana, aged 53, was arrested in Norway in 2022 following accusations from Kigali that he committed murder during the genocide.

The Oslo court approved his extradition last year, and after an appeal was rejected, the transfer was finalized in June 2025.

Rwanda’s National Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA) spokesperson Faustin Nkusi confirmed Gasana’s return, saying he arrived “following his extraction from the Kingdom of Norway.”

Gasana was previously convicted and sentenced to 19 years in prison by the Nyange Gacaca Court for his involvement in genocide crimes.

Gacaca courts, which were set up across Rwanda after the 1994 slaughter, provided a community justice mechanism where suspects faced their victims.

Nkusi shared that Gasana lived in the Western Province during the genocide period and attended Save Secondary School.

He further explained that Gasana had hired his own lawyer and that “upon a suspect’s return the Gacaca rulings are declared null and a trial starts afresh.” The date for this new trial is yet to be announced.

The prosecution authority expressed gratitude towards Norway, praising it for “the extraction of genocide fugitives, continued cooperation in matters of mutual legal assistance and contribution to the global effort to fight impunity.”

Ahishakiye Naphtal, executive secretary of Ibuka, a genocide survivors’ organization, welcomed the news. He described Gasana as “a young man who due to the genocide ideology he had been fed on... committed such heinous crimes.” Naphtal also urged other countries to emulate Norway’s commitment to justice, noting that many suspects are still at large abroad.

Norwegian officials confirmed the extradition, stating it followed “the final decision made by the king in council on 24 June 2025.”

Norway has processed several extradition cases involving genocide suspects in recent years and remains one of the Western countries where convictions have been secured since 2009.

The 1994 genocide in Rwanda resulted in the deaths of about 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus over a span of 100 days, after the assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana. More than 30 years later, efforts to bring all those responsible to justice are ongoing.