Rwanda sanctions two ‘terror’ fugitives in South Africa
Pretoria-based Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa and Frank Ntwali, in Johannesburg, are among 25 people who have been sanctioned by Kigali.
Two terror suspects, Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa and Frank Ntwali, both residing in South Africa, have been placed on a domestic sanctions list by Rwanda’s National Counter Terrorism Committee (NCTC) and the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC).
The list, released in October, designates these individuals – among a group of 25 – for alleged involvement “in terrorism or terrorist financing activities”.
Rwanda accuses South Africa of sheltering terror suspects
This move by Kigali puts the spotlight directly on Pretoria, with Rwanda accusing South Africa of providing Kayumba Nyamwasa with platforms and security despite persistent requests for his arrest or deportation.
Kayumba Nyamwasa, 67, who reportedly resides in Pretoria, is one of the founding members of the Rwanda National Congress (RNC) – designated as a terror organisation by Kigali. He was convicted in absentia on charges of coordinating grenade attacks in Kigali between 2010 and 2013.
The NCTC reports that Kayumba Nyamwasa is centrally involved in terrorism financing and controls the funds used for terror acts.
Kayumba Nyamwasa’s purported brother-in-law and RNC representative for Southern Africa, Frank Ntwali, is also under the hammer.
Ntwali, based in Johannesburg, stands accused of coordinating recruitment for RNC’s P5 armed wing and raising funds for RNC terror activities. Ntwali is also accused of liaising directly with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) to coordinate attacks against Rwanda.
List of suspects
The sanctions list contains 25 individuals who have been designated for asset freezes, travel bans and financial restrictions within Rwanda. The list names alleged members and associates of the FDLR, RNC, MRCD, and FLN, all militia groups linked to terrorism.
Beyond South Africa, the list highlights commanders based in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and individuals coordinating support across the globe.
Lieutenant-General Gaston Iyamuremye, the current president of the FDLR, is also listed and currently resides in Walikale, DRC, where he is accused of illegal taxation, extortion and plundering natural resources to finance terror.
Major-General Pacifique Ntawunguka, commander of FDLR-FOCA, is also DRC-based and sanctioned for planning terror activities.
The terror financing network stretches into the Southern African Development Community (SADC), with Colonel Sylvestre Sebahinzi, an FDLR financial mobiliser, based in Lusaka, Zambia.
Major Alphonse Munyarugendo, the FDLR coordinator for the SADC region, is located in Maputo, Mozambique.
Other key figures are spread across Europe and North America, including CNRD-FLN secretary-general Innocent Biruka in France, FLN coordinator Eric Munyemana in Belgium and RNC spokesperson Ignace Rusagara in the United States.
Kigali’s sanctioning body said that these actions build on long-standing efforts to neutralise threats from “genocidal remnants and their financiers who disguise themselves as political opposition”.
Past Rwandan suspects in South Africa
Rwandans are no strangers to being sought by Kigali in South Africa.
In 2023, Fulgence Kayishema – then-suspect linked to the Rwandan genocide of the 1990s – arrested in Cape Town after more than 20 years on the run.
As of December 2024, Kayishema was still fighting his transfer to UN custody, to face trial.