An Ethiopian court has sentenced Mengistu Haile Mariam, the former president, to life in prison for genocide, but
The sentence followed the Ethiopian Federal Court's conviction in December of Mengistu and 11 of his aides on 211 counts of genocide, murder, imprisonment and property seizure.
The prosecution had wanted Mengistu executed on his conviction at the conclusion of the 12-year trial that ended on December 12.
A further 60 defendants were also found guilty of genocide, but only by a majority 2-1 ruling by the judges, who acquitted some but not all on several of the lesser charges.
Only one defendant was acquitted on all charges.
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'Red Terror'
The trial related to atrocities committed during the 1977-78 "Red Terror" period when tens of thousands of people were killed or disappeared in Mengistu's bid to turn
He and his former top aides were also accused of the murders of former Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie, whom they overthrew in a 1974 coup d'etat, and Orthodox Patriarch Abuna Tefelows.
Of the 73 accused, 14 have died and only 33 were present in court. Mengistu was among 25 defendants tried in absentia.
Only four of those present were handed prison sentences of between 23 and 25 years.
