93-Year-Old Belgian Diplomat Faces Lumumba War Crimes Trial

A Brussels court has ordered 93-year-old former Belgian diplomat Étienne Davignon to stand trial on war crimes charges related to the 1961 assassination of Patrice Lumumba, the first prime minister of the newly independent Democratic Republic of Congo. The ruling, issued on Tuesday, marks the first prosecution of a Belgian official in connection with the killing, which has long symbolized the violent legacy of European colonialism in Africa.

Prosecutors accuse Davignon, who was a junior diplomat at the time of the events, of participating in the unlawful detention and transfer of Lumumba, denying him a fair trial, and subjecting him to humiliating and degrading treatment. The charges also extend to the murders of two of Lumumba's political allies, Maurice Mpolo and Joseph Okito, who were executed alongside him. Davignon, the only surviving suspect among the original 10 Belgians accused by Lumumba's family, did not attend the hearing. His lawyers have denied the allegations and previously argued that too much time has passed since the incidents, though the court rejected that defense and broadened the scope beyond initial submissions.

Lumumba rose to prominence as a fiery critic...