Tribunal charges Khmer Rouge prison chief

Cambodia’s genocide tribunal charged the former chief of a Khmer Rouge torture centre with crimes against humanity today, marking the court’s first indictment against a leader of the communist group believed responsible for the deaths of 1.7 million people.

A statement issued by the co-investigating judges of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia said Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, had been placed in “provisional detention” after being charged.