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| Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda hands himself in in Rwanda | Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda hands himself in in Rwanda |
| (17 days later) | |
| Fugitive Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda walked into the US embassy in Kigali, Rwanda on Monday and asked to be transferred to the international criminal court, where he faces war crimes charges. With his surrender, where an embassy official said staff were "shocked" by his sudden arrival, Ntaganda ended a career that saw him fight as a rebel and government soldier on both sides of the Rwanda-Congo border during nearly 20 years of conflict in Africa's Great Lakes region. | Fugitive Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda walked into the US embassy in Kigali, Rwanda on Monday and asked to be transferred to the international criminal court, where he faces war crimes charges. With his surrender, where an embassy official said staff were "shocked" by his sudden arrival, Ntaganda ended a career that saw him fight as a rebel and government soldier on both sides of the Rwanda-Congo border during nearly 20 years of conflict in Africa's Great Lakes region. |
| Ntaganda's whereabouts had been unknown after hundreds of his fighters fled into Rwanda or surrendered to UN peacekeepers at the weekend following their defeat by a rival faction of M23 rebels in the mineral-rich eastern Congo. "He specifically asked to be transferred to the ICC in the Hague," US state department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters in Washington. "We are currently consulting with a number of governments, including the Rwandan government, in order to facilitate his request." | Ntaganda's whereabouts had been unknown after hundreds of his fighters fled into Rwanda or surrendered to UN peacekeepers at the weekend following their defeat by a rival faction of M23 rebels in the mineral-rich eastern Congo. "He specifically asked to be transferred to the ICC in the Hague," US state department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters in Washington. "We are currently consulting with a number of governments, including the Rwandan government, in order to facilitate his request." |
| ICC spokesman Fadi el-Abdullah said the court would put in place all necessary measures to ensure a swift surrender. | ICC spokesman Fadi el-Abdullah said the court would put in place all necessary measures to ensure a swift surrender. |
| Ntaganda faces charges of conscripting child soldiers, murder, ethnic persecution, sexual slavery and rape during the 2002-03 conflict in the Ituri district of northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. | Ntaganda faces charges of conscripting child soldiers, murder, ethnic persecution, sexual slavery and rape during the 2002-03 conflict in the Ituri district of northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. |
| But according to a UN panel of experts, Ntaganda, nicknamed "The Terminator", was most recently a leader of the M23 rebellion, which has pursued a year-long insurgency that embarrassed Kinshasa and U.N. peacekeepers by seizing the capital of North Kivu province, Goma, in November. | But according to a UN panel of experts, Ntaganda, nicknamed "The Terminator", was most recently a leader of the M23 rebellion, which has pursued a year-long insurgency that embarrassed Kinshasa and U.N. peacekeepers by seizing the capital of North Kivu province, Goma, in November. |
| The experts said the rebellion was backed by Rwanda and Uganda, both of which deny sending troops to aid the insurgency. | The experts said the rebellion was backed by Rwanda and Uganda, both of which deny sending troops to aid the insurgency. |
| Born in Rwanda, Ntaganda grew up in Congo before fighting alongside Rwandan Tutsi rebels who seized control of the small central Africa country, ending the 1994 genocide in which over 800,000 people died. | Born in Rwanda, Ntaganda grew up in Congo before fighting alongside Rwandan Tutsi rebels who seized control of the small central Africa country, ending the 1994 genocide in which over 800,000 people died. |
| Ntaganda then returned to Congo, where he took part in a series of rebellions but also served temporarily as a senior general and made a name for himself smuggling minerals. | Ntaganda then returned to Congo, where he took part in a series of rebellions but also served temporarily as a senior general and made a name for himself smuggling minerals. |
| Congolese government spokesman Lambert Mende said Ntaganda had crossed into Rwanda on Saturday with help from the Rwandan army. | Congolese government spokesman Lambert Mende said Ntaganda had crossed into Rwanda on Saturday with help from the Rwandan army. |
| "We'd prefer to have him judged here, but if he is sent to The Hague, that's no problem either," Mende told Reuters. "The most important thing is that justice is served." | "We'd prefer to have him judged here, but if he is sent to The Hague, that's no problem either," Mende told Reuters. "The most important thing is that justice is served." |
| Neither Rwanda nor the United States has an obligation to hand over Ntaganda to The Hague-based ICC since they are not parties to the Rome Statute that established the court. | Neither Rwanda nor the United States has an obligation to hand over Ntaganda to The Hague-based ICC since they are not parties to the Rome Statute that established the court. |
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