Former Rwandan colonel Théoneste Bagosora was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 1994 genocide. (Cukhdev Chhatbar/Associated Press)

A former Rwandan army colonel accused of being a mastermind behind the 1994 Rwanda genocide was sentenced Thursday to life in prison by a United Nations court.

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda Judge Erik Mose said Théoneste Bagosora was "guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity and war crimes."

Bagosora said nothing as the verdict was delivered, and there was complete silence from the scores of people who had packed into the aisles of the tiny courtroom to hear the judgment.

Bagosora, 67, was in charge of troops and Interahamwe Hutu militia who butchered minority Tutsis and moderate Hutus in the central African nation. The court said Bagosora distributed weapons, including machetes, and directed the soldiers and militia.

The massacres took place in 1994 after Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana's plane was mysteriously shot down over Kigali as he returned home from peace talks with Tutsi-led rebels.

Hours after the crash, the Interahamwe set up roadblocks across Kigali and the next day the killings began.

Harshest punishment

"Bagosora … is the person behind all the massacres," Jean Paul Rurangwa told the Associated Press. Rurangwa lost his father and two sisters during the genocide. "The fact that he was sentenced to the biggest punishment the court can give is a relief."

The tribunal does not have the power to impose a death sentence.

Prosecutors said during the tribunal that Bagosora, formerly a director in the Defence Ministry, assumed control of military and political affairs in Rwanda after Habyarimana's death. He was the second-highest-ranking official in the Defence Ministry when the killings started.

More than 800,000 people were slaughtered in 100 days during the Rwandan genocide.

Retired Canadian general Roméo Dallaire, who headed the United Nations peacekeepers in Rwanda during the genocide, has previously described Bagosora as the "kingpin" and said the colonel had threatened to kill him with a pistol. Dallaire testified before the international tribunal in 2004.

Stormed out of peace talks

The Tanzania-based tribunal was set up by the UN in 1994 to try those responsible for the killing. It had its first conviction in 1997. There have been 42 judgments, with six acquittals.

Bagosora faced 11 charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Bagosora also was found responsible for the deaths of former Rwandan prime minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana and 10 Belgian peacekeepers.

During the trial, the court heard that Bagosora stormed out of peace talks with Tanzania and said he was returning to Rwanda to "prepare the apocalypse."

Reed Brody, a specialist in international justice for Human Rights Watch, said the sentence sends a clear message to other world leaders accused of crimes against humanity and genocide.

"It says watch out. Justice can catch up with you," Brody said. "The authors of genocide can and will be punished by the international community."

Former military commanders Anatole Nsegiyumva and Alloys Ntabakuze were found guilty of genocide on Thursday and sentenced to life in prison.

Former chief of military operations Gratien Kabiligi was cleared of all charges and released.

20-year sentence

The brother-in-law of Habyarimana was also sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday.

Protais Zigiranyirazo, a businessman known as "Monsieur Z," was believed to be a member of the Akazu, a small but powerful ruling elite of Hutu families, believed to have plotted to exterminate minority Tutsis.

Zigiranyirazo was accused of conspiracy to commit genocide, genocide, complicity in genocide, murder and extermination.

Dallaire declined to comment on the convictions on Friday. An assistant to Dallaire said the senator supports the international tribunal courts but does not comment on specific cases.

The international tribunal has until the end of the year to wind up its activities and until 2010 to hear all appeals. The UN General Assembly is discussing whether to extend the court's mandate.

French media are reporting that Bagosora intends to appeal his conviction. Bagosora pleaded not guilty to the charges when his five-year trial began in 2002 and has maintained that he never killed anyone.

With files from the Associated Press