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DRC rebel chief 'the Terminator' convicted of war crimes DRC warlord 'the Terminator' convicted of war crimes
(about 1 hour later)
International criminal court judges have convicted a Congolese rebel chief known as “the Terminator” of war crimes, including directing massacres of civilians and rape, in a significant victory for prosecutors in The Hague. A warlord responsible for mass murder, rape and abduction in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been convicted of war crimes by the international criminal court.
Bosco Ntaganda, 45, was a key leader who gave orders to target and kill civilians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s volatile, mineral-rich Ituri region in 2002 and 2003, the head judge, Robert Fremr, said. Bosco Ntaganda, 45, was a key militia leader who ordered the massacre of civilians in the DRC’s restive Ituri province in 2002 and 2003, judges in The Hague said.
The atrocities included a mass killing at a village where people, including children and babies, were “disembowelled or had their heads smashed in”, the judge said. Ntaganda was also responsible for the rape and sexual slavery of underage girls, and for recruiting troops under the age of 15. He was also guilty ofpersonally killing a Roman Catholic priest, the court said. The atrocities included a mass killing at a village where people – including children and babies – were “disembowelled or had their heads smashed in”, it added.
Ntaganda fulfilled a very important military function and he was one of the key leaders of the rebel group, judges said, adding that his skills were held in high regard. “In relation to these direct orders to target and kill civilians, Mr Ntaganda endorsed criminal conduct by his own orders,” they said. Ntaganda was also responsible for the rape and sexual slavery of underage girls, for recruiting troops under the age of 15, and for personally killing a Roman Catholic priest, the court said.
He will be sentenced at a later date after judges hear submissions from victims. Judges can give a life sentence. The conviction is an important achievement for the ICC, which has suffered a series of significant setbacks in recent years. The institution remains deeply controversial, especially in Africa, where most of its investigations have been focused.
The softly-spoken Ntaganda – known for his pencil moustache and a penchant for fine dining – told judges during his trial that he was a “soldier not a criminal” and that the Terminator nickname did not apply to him. Ntaganda, whose cruelty and violence earned him the nickname “the Terminator”, will be sentenced on 13 counts of war crimes and five counts of crimes against humanity at a later date after judges hear submissions from victims. He could face a life sentence.
Rwandan-born Ntaganda was found guilty of 13 counts of war crimes and five counts of crimes against humanity for his role in the brutal conflict that wracked the north-eastern region. Campaigners welcomed the court decision.
Prosecutors portrayed him as the ruthless leader of ethnic Tutsi revolts amid the wars that wracked DRC after the 1994 genocide of Tutsis in neighbouring Rwanda. “We hope that today’s verdict provides some consolation to the thousands affected by his grotesque crimes [and] paves the way for them to finally obtain a measure of justice [and] reparations,” tweeted Amnesty International.
More than 60,000 people have been killed since the violence erupted in the region in 1999, according to rights groups, as militias battle each other for control of scarce mineral resources. Congolese organisations which collected and submitted evidence to the ICC to help secure the conviction of Ntaganda said other suspected criminals still enjoyed impunity, and atrocities continued to be committed in the DRC.
Prosecutors said Ntaganda was central to the planning and operations for the Union of Congolese Patriots rebels and its military wing, the Patriotic Forces for the Liberation of Congo (FPLC). Ntaganda, who wore a dark suit and a tie throughout the three year trial, told judges he was a “soldier not a criminal”.
The FPLC killed at least 800 people as it fought rival militias in Ituri, prosecutors said. The eastern provinces of the DRC have been wracked by conflict for many decades. More than 60,000 people have been killed since violence erupted in the region in 1999, according to rights groups, as militias compete for control of valuable mines and timber. The case focused on two specific attacks: one in late 2002 and another in early 2003.
“To date, the efforts made by national authorities to identify and prosecute perpetrators responsible for the alleged crimes … have been limited and insufficient,” a coalition of campaign groups in DRC said in a statement.
Prosecutors said Ntaganda was central to the planning and operations for the Union of Congolese Patriots rebels and its military wing, the Patriotic Forces for the Liberation of Congo, which killed at least 800 people as it fought rival militias in Ituri.
In one attack directed by Ntaganda, judges said soldiers had killed at least 49 captured people in a banana field behind a village using “sticks and batons as well as knives and machetes”.In one attack directed by Ntaganda, judges said soldiers had killed at least 49 captured people in a banana field behind a village using “sticks and batons as well as knives and machetes”.
“Men, women and children and babies were found in the field. Some bodies were found naked. Some had hands tied up. Some had their heads crushed. Several bodies were disembowelled or otherwise mutilated,” Fremr said. “Men, women, and children and babies were found in the field. Some bodies were found naked. Some had hands tied up. Some had their heads crushed. Several bodies were disembowelled or otherwise mutilated,” said the presiding judge, Robert Fremr.
Formerly a Congolese army general, Ntaganda then became a founding member of the M23 rebel group, which was eventually defeated by Congolese government forces in 2013. Ntaganda was also implicated in violence in 2008 which led to the deaths of at least 150 people, and was a founding member of the M23 rebel group, which was eventually defeated by Congolese government forces in 2013 in bloody battles around the city of Goma.
The first suspect ever to voluntarily surrender to the ICC, he walked into the US embassy in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, in 2013 and asked to be sent to the court, based in the Netherlands. The first suspect ever to voluntarily surrender to the ICC, Ntaganda walked into the US embassy in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, six years ago and asked to be sent to the court, based in the Netherlands. Experts believe Ntaganda gave himself up because he feared assassination after the collapse of the M23 movement.
Ntaganda is one of five Congolese warlords brought before the ICC, which was set up in 2002 as an independent international body to prosecute those accused of the world’s worst crimes. The ICC was set up in 2002 as an independent international body to prosecute those accused of the world’s worst crimes where national authorities were incapable of bringing perpetrators to justice.
It has suffered a string of setbacks over recent years with some of its most high-profile suspects walking free, including the Ivorian former leader Laurent Gbagbo earlier this year. It has also been criticised for mainly trying African suspects so far. But prosecutions have not been straightforward. In February, the former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo was acquitted by the ICC of charges of crimes against humanity. The convictions of the former Congolese vice-president, Jean-Pierre Bemba, for war crimes and crimes against humanity were overturned last year.
The US administration of Donald Trump has also attacked the court after warning it against prosecuting US service members for war crimes in Afghanistan. Many in Africa have been critical of the court.
The US administration of Donald Trump has also attacked the ICC after warning it against prosecuting US service members for war crimes in Afghanistan.
In April judges at the court blocked the investigation saying prosecution was unlikely to be successful because those targeted, including the US, Afghan authorities and the Taliban, would not cooperate.
Democratic Republic of the CongoDemocratic Republic of the Congo
International criminal courtInternational criminal court
War crimesWar crimes
AfricaAfrica
International criminal justiceInternational criminal justice
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