Leading Rwandan opposition figure detained

Opposition politician and President of Development And Liberty For All (DALFA) Victoire Ingabire looks on at the High Court in Kigali on March 13, 2024. [AFP]

A leading Rwandan opposition figure and a rare  critic of President Paul Kagame's iron-fisted rule has been arrested, the country's investigative agency said Friday.

Victoire Ingabire's detention follows a court appearance on Thursday in the capital Kigali for questioning in connection with a trial of nine people accused of attempting to learn how to overthrow the government using non-violent means.

The Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) said Friday that Ingabire was "being charged on a case of creating a criminal organisations and inciting the public against the leadership".

The RIB said it had launched an investigation against her "as a way of implementing the High Court decision in regards to the ongoing case of Sibomana Sylvain and his colleagues, so she can also be tried" -- a reference to Thursday's court case on Thursday.

It did not give further details, including when she might be charged.

On Thursday, Ingabire distanced herself from the charges, telling the court that her party, DALFA-Umurinzi, "has never organised, conducted or funded any such a training".

While some of those on trial were known to her, she said the case was an attempt by the prosecution to link unrelated events.

Ingabire spent eight in prison after being found guilty of publicly questioning the government narrative of the 1994 genocide that killed around 800,000 people.

The remainder of her 15-year sentence was commuted by Kagame in 2018, but she remains banned from standing in any upcoming elections.

In March 2024, she lost a bid to have the ban overturned so she could stand in the presidential polls, which Kagame later swept with 99 percent of the vote.