Former Khmer Rouge officials found guilty of genocide

16 November 2018 - 10:05 By Reuters
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Former Khmer Rouge head of state Khieu Samphan sits inside the courtroom of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) as he awaits a verdict, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, November 16, 2018.
Former Khmer Rouge head of state Khieu Samphan sits inside the courtroom of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) as he awaits a verdict, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, November 16, 2018.
Image: Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)/Handout via REUTERS

Two top officials of Cambodia's Khmer Rouge were found guilty of genocide by a UN-backed court on Friday, almost four decades after the apocalyptic regime which oversaw the "Killing Fields" was overthrown.

The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), said Khmer Rouge "Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea, 92, and former President Khieu Samphan, 87, had been found guilty of crimes against humanity and genocide against the Cham Muslims and the Vietnamese.

They were the first Khmer Rouge officials found guilty of genocide and were sentenced to life in prison.

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