Mengistu Gets Life Sentence for Ethiopian Genocide Charges

Exiled former Ethiopian ruler Mengistu Haile Mariam has been sentenced to life in prison on genocide charges.

The former leader was found guilty last month after a 12-year trial, although he is living in Zimbabwe.

After his conviction, Zimbabwe said it would not extradite him and many fear he will never face justice.

In a notorious campaign - known as the Red Terror - thousands of suspected opponents were rounded up and executed and their bodies tossed on the streets.

Mengistu, who was born in 1937, could have faced the death penalty.

He has refused to recognise the legal basis of the trial, accusing those who overthrew him of being mercenaries and colonisers.