Rwanda leader is inaugurated; won nearly 99 percent of vote

KIGALI, Rwanda – Rwandan President Paul Kagame is being inaugurated after winning re-election with nearly 99 percent of the vote.

Friday's ceremony is being attended by many African leaders.

The longtime president had described the Aug. 4 election as "a formality" while campaigning.

The East African nation has virtually no political opposition, and critics accuse Kagame of being intolerant of dissent. He denies it.

Kagame has been de facto leader or president since the end of the 1994 genocide. Because of a change to the constitution in 2015, he can legally stay in power until 2034.

A Human Rights Watch statement says Rwanda's election "took place in a context of very limited free speech or open political space."

Amnesty International had described a "climate of fear" ahead of the vote.