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Bosco Ntaganda sits in the courtroom of the International Criminal Court during the closing statements of his trial in The Hague, Netherlands, August 28, 2018.  © 2018 Bas Czerwinski/Pool via AP
(New York) – Human Rights Watch released today a question-and-answer document on the trial of the former Congolese general and armed group leader Bosco Ntaganda before the International Criminal Court (ICC). The court’s verdict in the case is scheduled for July 8, 2019.

Ntaganda is charged with alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Ituri, in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, in 2002 and 2003. The ICC issued two arrest warrants against him, one in 2006 and one in 2012, but he remained at large for nearly seven years before surrendering in March 2013. Ntaganda is the fourth person to be tried by the ICC for international crimes committed in Congo.

The Q&A provides background on the case against Ntaganda, next steps in the proceedings, and the work of the ICC in Congo.

“The trial against Bosco Ntaganda is a powerful reminder to warlords in Congo that they too could face prosecution,” said Maria Elena Vignoli, international justice counsel at Human Rights Watch. “At the same time, this case highlights the need for the ICC and Congolese authorities to do more to bring justice for atrocities in Congo.”

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