CAPE TOWN, June 20 (Reuters) - Former Rwandan police officer Fulgence Kayishema, accused of participating in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, has abandoned his application for bail and applied for political asylum in South Africa, prosecuting authorities and his lawyer said on Tuesday. Rwandan genocide suspect Fulgence Kayishema appears at the Cape Town Magistrates' Court where 54 new charges were added against him, in Cape Town, South Africa June 9, 2023. REUTERS/Nic Bothma/File PhotoThe NPA said the 62-year-old accused "has abandoned his bail application and will instead launch an asylum application today". "My client fears for his life, if and when extradited, hence the very reason for his asylum application which has been filed today," Kayishema's lawyer, Juan Smuts, told Reuters in an emailed response. He said further details would be revealed in his client's asylum application to officials at the Department of Home Affairs.

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Persons: Fulgence Kayishema, Kayishema, Nic Bothma, Juan Smuts, Wendell Roelf, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Former Rwandan, Rwanda, National Prosecuting Authority, Cape Town Magistrates, REUTERS, Reuters, Department of Home Affairs, Thomson Locations: CAPE, South Africa, Cape Town, Cape Town , South Africa