Rebel leader guilty of attack in Congo
Print Edition
THE International Criminal Court yesterday convicted a rebel leader of charges including murder and pillage over a deadly attack on a village in eastern Congo, but acquitted him of rape, sexual slavery and using child soldiers.
Germain Katanga showed no emotion as judges convicted him as an accessory in the attack on the strategic village of Bogoro on February 24, 2003, in which some 200 civilians were hacked or shot to death and many women were raped and turned into sex slaves.
Katanga, nicknamed Simba, is only the second person convicted since the court was established in 2002. Another alleged rebel leader originally charged with him, Mathieu Ngudjolo, was acquitted of all charges in December 2012.
In a 2-1 majority verdict, the court said Katanga played an important role in the attack on Bogoro by arming rebel fighters, “reinforcing the strike capability of the militia,” Presiding Judge Bruno Cotte said.
One of the three judges slammed the verdict, however, saying that the court changed the nature of the charges against Katanga, depriving him of the ability to defend himself.
Katanga originally was charged as an “indirect co-perpetrator” in the crimes, but judges said yesterday they had changed the nature of his involvement to cast him as an “accessory,” effectively watering down his involvement in the attack.
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