CHAD MOVES FORWARD ON KIDNAP CASE !
The children have been temporarily placed in a Chadian orphanage. Chad's legal authorities say 10 people - including six French nationals - will be tried in a criminal court over a bid to fly 103 children out of the country.
The French nationals will face charges of attempted kidnapping, forgery, and fraud. Three Chadians and one Sudanese refugee are accused of complicity.
Until now, the authorities had not said whether the 10 would face a criminal trial or be tried by a lower court.
All deny wrongdoing. They could face up to 20 years' hard labour if convicted.
The six members of the French charity Zoe's Ark say they were trying to help orphans from the Darfur conflict in Sudan.
The six - who are being held in the Chadian capital N'Djamena - have begun a hunger strike to protest against the conduct of the legal process, judicial sources say.
'Inhumane' operation
Meanwhile Chadian authorities also confirmed they had dismissed the case against 12 other suspects in the case - including French journalists and a Spanish air crew, who have already been allowed to leave Chad.
France has called on Chad to release the workers so they can be tried on French soil.
The aid workers were arrested in October in the eastern town of Abeche, for what officials say was an illegal attempt to fly 103 children to France.
Zoe's Ark has said it thought the children were orphans from the conflict-torn region of Darfur in neighbouring Sudan.
But international humanitarian organisations have said that almost all the children were from Chadian villages in the border area, and had at least one parent or adult guardian.
Chadian President Idriss Deby has described the operation as "inhumane", and said those responsible would be "severely punished".
The UN children's agency, Unicef, said the operation "took place in violation of international rules".
In August, the French authorities issued a warning about the activities of Zoe's Ark, saying there was no guarantee that the children whom the group wanted to transport were actually orphans.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
The French nationals will face charges of attempted kidnapping, forgery, and fraud. Three Chadians and one Sudanese refugee are accused of complicity.
Until now, the authorities had not said whether the 10 would face a criminal trial or be tried by a lower court.
All deny wrongdoing. They could face up to 20 years' hard labour if convicted.
The six members of the French charity Zoe's Ark say they were trying to help orphans from the Darfur conflict in Sudan.
The six - who are being held in the Chadian capital N'Djamena - have begun a hunger strike to protest against the conduct of the legal process, judicial sources say.
'Inhumane' operation
Meanwhile Chadian authorities also confirmed they had dismissed the case against 12 other suspects in the case - including French journalists and a Spanish air crew, who have already been allowed to leave Chad.
France has called on Chad to release the workers so they can be tried on French soil.
The aid workers were arrested in October in the eastern town of Abeche, for what officials say was an illegal attempt to fly 103 children to France.
Zoe's Ark has said it thought the children were orphans from the conflict-torn region of Darfur in neighbouring Sudan.
But international humanitarian organisations have said that almost all the children were from Chadian villages in the border area, and had at least one parent or adult guardian.
Chadian President Idriss Deby has described the operation as "inhumane", and said those responsible would be "severely punished".
The UN children's agency, Unicef, said the operation "took place in violation of international rules".
In August, the French authorities issued a warning about the activities of Zoe's Ark, saying there was no guarantee that the children whom the group wanted to transport were actually orphans.
posted by jackaranda at 2:55 pm
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