Phnom Penh: Cambodia's UN-backed genocide
tribunal says it has moved a step closer to trying four former
senior members of the Khmer Rouge after rejecting their
appeals to drop the indictments against them.
The tribunal says Nuon Chea, the Khmer Rouge's chief
ideologist; Khieu Samphan, its head of state; Ieng Sary, its
foreign minister; and his wife Ieng Thirith, who was minister
for social affairs, were today ordered to be sent for trial.
No date was mentioned for the trial to begin, though
court officials had previously targeted midyear.
Charges against the four include crimes against
humanity, genocide, war crimes and murder, torture and
religious persecution. An estimated 1.7 million people died
under the Khmer Rouge's rule in the late 1970s.
PTI
First Published: Thursday, January 13, 2011, 21:15