The M7, Kagame hand in shooting down of Habyarimana plane
Last updated : 04 July 2007, Kampala
Shortly after the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) had reluctantly agreed to
the Arusha Peace Accord in 1993, they met in Rwakitura to find how to help the
Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA) to take power in Kigali. They agreed that the
quickest way was to assasinate President Juvenal Habyarimana of Rwanda. Hit
squads and other ways were discused but the one we want to report on was to
shoot down the presidential jet. Rwakitura for those who don't know is
Museveni's village home.
Some of the people who attended that meeting were then Uganda's powerful
Director General of ISO Brig. Jim Muhwezi, Col Samson Mande the military
attache to Uganda's High Commission in Dar es Salaam (who by the way is
indicated on the certificate of purchase of the Russian made missiles that were
used), Gen. Paul Kagame, Lt. Col. James Kabarebe of the RPA, Col. Theoneste
Lizinde and a host of other RPF top dogs. (Col. Lizinde had defected to the RPA
after serving as Pres. Habyarimana's director of intelligence).
But in order to shoot down the plane, the problem was how to trap President
Habyarimana into flying in such that his schedule and movements could be
tracked. So they did it by calling a meeting where heads of state would
come.There were good excuses for this. At that time the Arusha peace agreement
between the RPF/RPA and Rwandan government was stuck. There were also problems
in Burundi.
So Museveni convinced President Mwinyi of Tanzania to call a summit meeting
to discuss these problems. The meeting finally took place on April 6 1994 in
Dar es Salaam. Among the topics was the progress of integrating RPF in the so
called interim government in Kigali, which had been agreed on in the Arusha
accords.
At Dar es Salaam, first, this man Museveni arrived extremely late. Then also
during the meeting he kept talking and talking about irrelevant things which
had nothing to do with agreed agenda and the meeting couldn't end on time.
Ugandans know that this is typical Museveni backward manners, where he delays
for hours thinking the whole world should wait for him and then enjoy the sound
of his voice for more hours.
But looking back, it seems Museveni made sure Habyarimana was delayed in
Tanzania until dusk so that by the time they would arrive in Kigali, it would
be dark (insecure). Darkness would be the best time in terms of visibility
(planes lights, and noise as the city is quieter) and the shooters not being
detected under cover of darkness.
You shall recall, that after their meeting M7 was on the tarmac to see off
Habyarimana. It is said that the late Habyarimana offered to travel with the
Ugandan ambassador to Rwanda, Ignatius Katetegirwe but the ambassador declined
saying he had unfinished business in Tanzania.
However the plot (to down the plane) had leaked to Tanzanian intelligence.
Some people say the director of Tanzania's Intelligence and Security service,
Major General Imrani Kombe did warn Habyarimana not to travel that evening.
But as was characteristic of Habyarimana, he did not take the advice,
reasoning that since he had agreed to step down from power and hand over to an
interim government, then there was no need to eliminate him.
Habyarimana left Dar-es-Salaam Airport about 6:30pm East African Time and
approached Kanombe International Airport in Kigali at approximately 8.20pm
Central African Time. The RPA had taken positions under the flight path which
planes used to approach Kanombe airport to Land. As the presidential Falcon jet
came in to land, two surface-to-air (SAM) missiles were fired, one of which hit
the presidential plane hence bringing it down and killing everyone on board.
The plane was confirmed downed at about 8:30pm. Incidentally April 6 1994, the
day Habyarimana was assassinated, was his 58th birthday.
The claim that the Rwandese "Akazu" or kitchen cabinet composed of his wife
Agathe Habyarimana and her brothers plotted to kill Habyarimana is untenable
because Col. Elly Segatwa (Director of Intelligence) who was his brother-in-law
and other relatives of the first lady Agathe were on the same plane and met the
same fate.
You shall recall the RPA had sent about 600 troops to Kigali after the Arusha
accord, and in fact also continued to secretly infiltrate many more soldiers
into Kigali using contacts in Habyarimana's government like Gen. Marcel
Gatsinzi. Immediately after downing the plane, that very night the RPA attacked
Kigali including the La Presidence, the seat of the President but were
repulsed.
On morning of the following day April 7, among the first victims of the chaos
that overhwelmed Rwanda for months to come were former Prime Minister Agathe
Uwilingiyimana. Units of the ex Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR) attacked the Prime
Minister's residence and killed both Agathe and her husband. Ten Belgian
soldiers under the UN force United Nations Assistance Mission to Rwanda
(UNAMIR) who were guarding her were arrested and later also murdered.
The bringing down of the plane was well a hatched plan. Col. Lizinde who had
been Habyarimana's Intelligence Chief was instrumental in providing secret
details about the Rwandan government and of the best coordinates to hit
Habyarimana's plane when it was approaching Kanombe airport. However much as
there were efforts to absolve Uganda and RPF including the elimination of
potential witnesses like Col. Lizinde, the evidence would finally emerge.
In January 1996, Gen. Kombe the Tanzanian Military Intelligence chief was
shot dead mysteriously at a fake road block. In 1998 Lizinde was assassinated
by suspected RPA agents in Nairobi but the tubes used to shoot the misiles
which the French Judge Jean-Louis Bruguiere used to pin Kagame were never to be
'assassinated'. On them the serial numbers were found which were traced to the
arms factory in Russia and the purchaser is also well indicated.
Well, we as Radio Katwe have asked our dear readers that why is it that
Uganda's ambassador Ignatius Katetegirwe closed down the Uganda embassy a few
days before the plane was shot down and why was the Uganda embassy not looted
or destroyed during the "genocide"? Why did senior RPF officers in Kigali (as
part of the Arusha accords) rush to bring their relatives back to Uganda
shortly before that fateful day April 6 1994?
There are still many questions but we are getting info from Rwandans at home
and abroad and soon we shall have the whole story complete.
We are also interested to know what the late Lt. Col. Reuben Ikondere was
doing in Kigali leading a Ugandan battalion round about the time of the
shooting of the plane.
The Mulindwas Communication Group
"With Yoweri Museveni, Uganda is in anarchy"
Groupe de communication Mulindwas
"avec Yoweri Museveni, l'Ouganda est dans l'anarchie"
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