Guinea massacre 'crime against humanity'

The massacre of opposition supporters by Guinea troops amounts to "crimes against humanity,” says a leaked report by the United Nations.The report investigating the September massacre of protesters in the capital, by governmental troops was handed in to the UN Security Council on Saturday. Its writers said Guinea's military leader Capt Moussa Dadis Camara bears "direct criminal responsibility” and should be tried for the killings. The investigation confirmed the identities of 156 people killed or missing when security forces loyal to military  junta leader, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara, opened fire on a crowd holding a rally in a in an opposition protest that had gathered in a stadium.

Based on interviews with more than 600 people, the report said that at least 109 women were subjected to "rapes and other sexual violence, including sexual mutilations and sexual slavery" during the mayhem. Women and girls were carried away to barracks and officers' homes to serve as sex slaves for several days. Others  were raped, in the assault on September 28, which sparked worldwide international condemnation. "It is reasonable to conclude that the crimes perpetrated on September 28 and the following days can be described as "crimes against humanity," said the panel running the inquiry set up by UN chief Ban Ki-moon in October. While, officially it has not yet been made public, the report clearly accuses the country's top authorities including junta leader Moussa Dadis Camara of being responsible for the massacre and say they consider that there is enough evidence for the leader of the military regime, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara, to be personally held accountable before international justice.

The report requests the International Court of Justice to take action against Captain Camara and several others in his entourage for crimes against humanity. "We are now checking whether the national judiciary of Guinea is conducting their own investigation," said Beatrice Le Frapper, from the International Criminal Court prosecutor's office. "The ICC can only step in if the national judiciary is not conducting an investigation or prosecuting" those involved, she told French news services. The ICC would need to receive an official referral from the UN Security Council in order to move forward, she said.Guinea has been in turmoil since the military took over last December, but the shooting of Capt Camara by one of his soldiers on 3 December this year has thrown the country into even greater chaos, the BBC reported Capt Camara was flown to Morocco for treatment after the shooting and has not yet returned - fuelling rumours that he was seriously injured.

By Hayley Jarvis for SOS Children