South Africa also officially took umbrage at what it called undiplomatic language by Rwanda’s Deputy Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe

Pretoria officially demonstrated its anger by withdrawing its  Ambassador to Kigali George Twala for consultations.

Rwanda’s Ambassador to Pretoria Vinvent Karega was summoned to the foreign ministry for an official dressing down.

The Rwanda government was incensed by Sisulu telling reporters in Pretoria that she had been in talks with General Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa, a former confidante of President Paul Kagame who sought refuge in South Africa after falling foul of the Rwanda leader.

At least three assassination attempts have been made on Nyamwasa in South Africa where he has formed the opposition Rwanda National Congress.

This has angered the South African government.

The last straw, however was the 2014 murder of former Rwandan intelligence chief Patrick Karegeya in a luxury Johannesburg hotel.

South Africa expelled three Rwandan diplomats based in Pretoria. 

Rwanda responded by expelling six South African envoys in Kigali.

An inquest into Karegeya’s death will start in Randburg next year.

Prosecutor Yusuf Baba says it will last 15 days with at least 30 witnesses due to give evidence.

These include employees of the hotel where Karegeya was strangled with a curtain cord.

Karegeya’s family, who insist his death was ordered by Kagame, have welcomed this.

In March, President Cyril Ramaphosa instructed his foreign minister to work on mending bilateral relations with Rwanda. 

It has come to light that the white-collar-crime unit known as the Hawks have urged Home Affairs to delay issuing visas to Rwandans until the Karegeya inquest is completed.

At their meeting during the AU special summit last month, Ramaphosa assured Kagame this matter would be speedily resolved.

South African diplomats say since their protests in Pretoria and Kigali the insulting and undiplomatic tweets from Rwanda officials have ceased.

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Prosecutor Yusuf Baba says he’s lined up 30 witnesses for the case expected to last 15 days.

Patrick Karegeya, who fled to South Africa in 2007, was found strangled with a curtain cord in his suite at the Michelangelo Tower in Sandton on New Year’s Eve in 2013.

The dissident’s confidante Apollo Karisi Gataranga is the chief suspect.

Karegeya’s nephew  David Batenga says the family’s convinced the murder was ordered by Rwandan President Paul Kagame.

Prosecutor Yusuf Baba says the  inquest findings will be handed to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Any further steps will involve extradition because none of the suspects are in South Africa.

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The party insists Rwanda’s former spymaster was killed on orders from President Paul Kagame.

The hearing in the Randburg magistrates court tomorrow will decide on the date and venue for the inquest into the death of Colonel Patrick Karegeya.

His family and the Rwandan National Congress have expressed their gratitude to South African authorities for the progress made in the pursuit of justice.

Three Rwandan diplomats alleged to have been connected to the killing at the Michelangelo Towers on December 31 2013 were expelled.

Karegeya had been in exile in South Africa since 2007.

Rwanda reciprocated by expelling six South African diplomats.

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A 2015 referendum allows the man, who has effectively run Rwanda since the end of the 1994 genocide, to stay at the helm in 2034.

Paul Kagame’s supporters say his popularity for bringing order and economic development to Rwanda trumps the criticism that he uses state power to remove his political opponents.

The election campaigns been marked by the mass resignation of 800 army officers.

Authorities have arrested four military brass.

One of these is a relative of former intelligence chief Patrick Karegeya who’d fallen out with Kagame and was found strangled in a luxury Sandton hotel in January 2014.

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