Democratic Republic Of Congo
Former Democratic Republic of Congo vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba has arrived in Belgium after being acquitted on appeal of war crimes, the International Criminal Court said Friday.
The one-time rebel leader, who had already spent a decade behind bars, was “released provisionally under specific conditions,” the Hague-based court said in a statement.
In a surprise decision, judges on Friday overturned the 2016 verdict against Bemba and quashed his 18-year prison sentence, saying he could not be held criminally liable for crimes committed by his troops in the Central African Republic in 2002-2003.
ICC judges order for the release of Congolese ex Veep Jean Pierre Bemba
According to a source close to the case, Bemba left the ICC detention centre on Wednesday but remained under the supervision of the court pending approval from Belgian authorities for him to join his wife and children in Brussels.
A lawyer for Bemba confirmed that he was in the country.
Bemba’s wife and children are believed to be living in a villa in the suburb of Rhode-Saint-Genese, some 15 kilometres south of Brussels, where he was originally arrested in May 2008 at the ICC’s request.
AFP
01:06
Ebola: Controversial U.S.-backed quarantine center in Kenya starts
01:12
ECDC: Ebola threat to EU public remains very low
01:29
DR Congo airport reopens in Ebola-hit area as suspected cases drop
01:34
WHO chief is confident Ebola outbreak in DR Congo can be stopped
00:52
WHO chief visits town at the epicentre of Ebola outbreak in DR Congo
01:16
Race against Ebola: UNICEF, WHO and EU rush aid to Congo