Man portrayed as hero in Oscar-nominated film sentenced for terrorism

A man portrayed in the 2005 movie Hotel Rwanda as a life-saving hero has been sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Paul Rusesabagina, 67, was found guilty of supporting an exiled rebel group behind the deadly attacks on civilians in 2018/19.

His family however, has called the trial bogus alleging he was abducted from exile to face the trial in Rwanda.

Rusesabagina was showered with praise for his acts during the Rwandan genocide of 1994.

His story of sheltering over a 1,000 people inspired movie producers to make a film on his role during the bloodbath.

Rusesabagina was played by Don Cheadle in the Oscar-nominated movie Hotel Rwanda.

In it, Rusesabagina was seen as a hotel manager giving refuge to civilians from the Tutsi ethnicity escaping violence.

During the Rwandan genocide of 1994, over 800,000 civilians mostly from the Tutsi ethnic group were massacred by the extremists of the Hutu ethnicity.

Although, the validity of the events portrayed in the 2005 movie has been questioned by survivors.

Over the years, Rusesabagina became a staunch critic of the post-genocide government.

He voiced for human-rights and accused the government of targeting the Hutu community (behind the 1994 massacre).

Other rights groups have also accused the government of using the army as a tool to silence all opposition and torture its opponents.

Rusesabagina who was in exile was considered a state enemy, and became the leader of the Opposition coalition.

The coalition also had an armed wing (National Liberation Front Burundi).

Just before the 2018/19 attacks, Rusesabagina was seen in a video message calling for the government to be overthrown by any means necessary.

Rusesabagina has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for terrorism.

His conviction has the US concerned as he is a lawful permanent resident.

Rusesabagina is also the first high-profile Kagame government critic to have been nabbed and put on trial.