The former chief of the Rwandan army, Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa, was shot Saturday outside his home in Johannesburg, police said, dpa reported.
An unknown assailant emerged from a car and shot Nyamwasa in the stomach, police spokesman Govindsamy Mariemuthoo said. The general was seriously injured and was in stable condition in hospital.
He had been known as a critic of Rwandan President Paul Kagame and fled Kigali with his family in February.
Nyamwasa's wife told South African news agency SAPA she believed the attack was an attempted assassination.
Officials in France and Spain have issued warrants for Nyamwasa for his alleged role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide that left at least 800,000 dead.