French prosecutors accuse Kanziga of role in planning the Genocide as one of the influential figures within the former ruling elite group known as the “Akazu,” and of participating in the Genocide between April 7 and 9, 1994, before being evacuated by the government led former French President François Mitterrand.
In August 2025, an investigating judge in France halted the inquiry into Kanziga, which had begun in 2008, arguing that there was insufficient evidence to charge her with involvement in the planning and execution of the Genocide.
However, after hearing an appeal from the Paris Prosecutor General, the French Court of Appeal ruled on May 6, 2026, that the investigating judge had relied on questionable reasoning in suspending the case and ordered the investigation to resume.
On May 7, IBUKA said the date of the court’s decision would remain historic and would always be remembered by Genocide survivors, including former neighbors of Habyarimana in Kanombe, Nyarugunga Sector of Kicukiro District.
IBUKA emphasized that Kanziga belonged to the “Akazu” (Inner Circle), a network dominated by members of her family, which it says planned and carried out the Genocide that claimed the lives of more than one million Tutsi in 100 days.
The family of Marie Chantal Niyonshuti lived next to Habyarimana’s residence in Kanombe, with no other home separating the two compounds. Eight members of her family, including her mother and seven siblings, were killed during the Genocide.
In an interview with IGIHE in April 2024, Niyonshuti explained that many Tutsi were killed near Habyarimana’s residence following the shooting down of his plane, allegedly on Kanziga’s orders after she became enraged by her husband’s death.
“Before dawn, they wanted that when people came to see the remains of the plane, there would be no Tutsi left here. They immediately took them to the military camp and burned them. They did not even wait for daylight. Anyone who survived may only have escaped from beneath the bodies because their time to die had not yet come,” she said.
Following the Paris court’s decision to reopen the investigation, Niyonshuti expressed hope that the inquiry would not be suspended again.
“I have waited 32 years for justice. I am still waiting. Please do not allow the investigation to be halted again,” she said.
IBUKA President, Dr. Philibert Gakwenzire, said the organization is now focused on whether France will ultimately deliver justice. He added that Genocide survivors are prepared to testify about what they witnessed and endured.
“What concerns us now is what comes next. We ask the French justice system to remain on the path of hope that yesterday’s decision gave us. Survivors will be there, as always, to testify about what they saw and what they went through,” he said.
The investigating judge is expected to reexamine evidence and testimonies that had previously been overlooked but could help establish serious grounds to charge Kanziga with involvement in both the planning and execution of the Genocide.
IBUKA also stated that it stands ready to provide any assistance needed by the French justice system to ensure that the full truth in the case of Agathe Kanziga comes to light.
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