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First Khmer Rouge trial date set First Khmer Rouge trial date set
(about 2 hours later)
A UN-backed tribunal in Cambodia has set 17 February as the start date for the long-awaited first trial of former Khmer Rouge leaders.A UN-backed tribunal in Cambodia has set 17 February as the start date for the long-awaited first trial of former Khmer Rouge leaders.
Kaing Guek Eav - better known as Comrade Duch - will be the first in the dock, facing charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes.Kaing Guek Eav - better known as Comrade Duch - will be the first in the dock, facing charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes.
He ran Tuol Sleng prison, where detainees were tortured and executed.He ran Tuol Sleng prison, where detainees were tortured and executed.
As many as two million people are thought to have died during the Khmer Rouge government in the late 1970s.As many as two million people are thought to have died during the Khmer Rouge government in the late 1970s.
The process of bringing the regime's leaders to court has suffered years of procedural delays, and no major figures have yet stood trial. WHO WERE THE KHMER ROUGE? Maoist regime that ruled Cambodia from 1975-1979Founded and led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998 Abolished religion, schools and currency in a bid to create agrarian utopiaUp to two million people thought to have died from starvation, overwork or execution Brutal Khmer Rouge regime Duch was in charge of the notorious facility known as S-21 or Tuol Sleng, where about 15,000 prisoners were systematically tortured.The process of bringing the regime's leaders to court has suffered years of procedural delays, and no major figures have yet stood trial. WHO WERE THE KHMER ROUGE? Maoist regime that ruled Cambodia from 1975-1979Founded and led by Pol Pot, who died in 1998 Abolished religion, schools and currency in a bid to create agrarian utopiaUp to two million people thought to have died from starvation, overwork or execution Brutal Khmer Rouge regime Duch was in charge of the notorious facility known as S-21 or Tuol Sleng, where about 15,000 prisoners were systematically tortured.
Those who survived the ordeal were sent for execution in the so-called "killing fields".Those who survived the ordeal were sent for execution in the so-called "killing fields".
Officials have indicated that Duch cooperated with the investigating judges and is willing to testify in court, so correspondents say the trial should be a chance for survivors of the Khmer Rouge era to hear directly at last from one of the organisation's key figures. Officials have indicated that Duch has been co-operating with the investigating judges and is willing to testify in court.
The BBC's correspondent in Cambodia, Guy DeLauney, says Duch is expected to reveal important information about the decisions made by the organisation's leadership.
Justice for the survivors of the Khmer Rouge era now seems tantalisingly close, our correspondent says.
The initial hearing in February will examine the lists of witnesses to be brought by the prosecution and defence, and rule on the extent of participation by "civil parties" - victims of the Khmer Rouge who have asked to be given a voice at the trials.
The trial proper should follow in March.
Barring any unexpected problems, next month's hearing should be the final significant piece of court business before the start of the first trial, he says.