Skip to main content

El Salvador Court Orders Ex-President's Arrest Over 1981 Massacre

El Salvador Court Orders Ex-President's Arrest Over 1981 Massacre

Alfredo Cristiani has denied all charges (File)

San Salvador, El Salvador:

A court in El Salvador has ordered the arrest of former president Alfredo Cristiani for an alleged cover-up related to a civil war-era massacre of about 1,000 people, a source linked to the case said Saturday.

The "provisional detention" of Cristiani, whose whereabouts are unknown, stems from an amnesty he declared after the 1981 killings as part of a "personal cover-up," according to a court resolution confirmed to AFP by Alejandro Diaz, a lawyer for victims' relatives.

The order, which also calls for the arrest of four Cristiani deputies, was issued by a court in the city of San Francisco Gotera, which is prosecuting several members of the Salvadoran military for the massacre. 

Considered the largest in Latin America, the Mozote slaughter was perpetrated during the country's 1980-1992 civil war. 

"We are interested in seeing that all those responsible be prosecuted," including those who hindered investigators, Diaz said. 

According to the resolution, Cristiani and the others covered for those responsible by promoting a law -- passed in 1993 but revoked in 2016 -- that guaranteed "absolute impunity" to the authors of the massacres.

Priests killed

In 2012, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights condemned the Salvadoran state for its role in the killings.

From December 9 to 13, 1981, Salvadoran army units -- led by the US-trained Atlacatl counterinsurgency battalion -- launched an operation in Morazan department.  

The government determined in 2017 that at least 988 people, including 558 children, were murdered in and near El Mozote for allegedly supporting the leftist rebels of the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front. 

Overall, the Salvadoran conflict left more than 75,000 people dead and at least 7,000 missing. 

In March 2022, another judge ordered Cristiani's arrest for allegedly taking part in planning the assassination of six Catholic priests and two others. 

Cristiani has denied all charges. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Adblock test (Why?)



from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/rf9BNsh https://ift.tt/MYQH6fp
via IFTTT

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Barcelona Coach Xavi Banned For Two Games For Red Card In Season Opener

File image of Xavi Hernandez © AFP Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez will serve a two-match suspension after being sent off in his team's La Liga season opener against Getafe, it was announced Wednesday. Xavi was punished for his touchline behaviour during Sunday's 0-0 draw at Getafe, in which Barcelona winger Raphinha also received a red card in the first half for elbowing an opponent. Former Barcelona midfielder Xavi was dismissed with 20 minutes to play after leaving his technical area to remonstrate with the fourth official over a refereeing decision. Referee Cesar Soto Grado said in his report that he had already warned Xavi, who was critical of the officiating in his post-match press conference. Xavi and Raphinha will both miss Sunday's game against Cadiz and the trip to Villarreal on August 27. Topics mentioned in this article Adblock test (Why?) from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/rYApZUa https://ift.tt/OEf5L2w via IFTTT

Mob Attacks Hindu Procession In Maharashtra's Thane, Case Filed: Cops

The incident took place on Sunday night on Lodha Road, police said. (Representational) Thane: A mob of 50-60 persons was booked by Mira Bhayander Vasai Virar police in Thane district for allegedly assaulting a man who was part of a procession on the eve of the idol consecration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, an official said. The incident took place on Sunday night on Lodha Road and as per the complainant the mob armed with iron rods, sticks, bats shouted religious slogans and assaulted him when he was part of a procession comprising three vehicles and 10 two-wheelers, the official said. They vandalised the car with stones and sticks, the man said in his complaint to Naya Nagar police station. "A case of attempt to murder and other offences has been registered against a mob of 50-60 persons. Further probe is underway," the official added. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Adblock test (Wh

Twitter Launches Verified Accounts In 3 Colours

All verified individual humans will have same blue check on Twitter, Elon Musk said. Washington: Twitter's updated account verification program has finally launched. Earlier, every account had a blue tick now there is a development in which some accounts have turned Gold. Last month, CEO Elon Musk, took to the microblogging site to make the announcement. "Sorry for the delay, we're tentatively launching Verified on Friday next week." he posted. "Gold check for companies, grey check for government, blue for individuals (celebrity or not) and all verified accounts will be manually authenticated before check activates," the SpaceX owner added. He had earlier tweeted about the usage of different colours for different organisations and individuals but fleshed out the details just recently. "All verified individual humans will have same blue check, as boundary of what constitutes "notable" is otherwise too subjective." He tweeted. Ac