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ICC Confirms 39 War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity Charges Against Joseph Kony

A full trial can proceed only if the long‑fugitive LRA leader is arrested under ICC rules.

Overview

  • Pre‑Trial Chamber III found substantial grounds to believe Kony is responsible for atrocities committed in northern Uganda between July 2002 and December 2005.
  • Judges attributed 29 charges to Kony as an indirect co‑perpetrator and 10 as a direct perpetrator linked to two women forced to be his wives.
  • The confirmed counts include murder, rape, sexual slavery, enslavement, forced marriage, forced pregnancy, torture, persecution, pillaging, and conscripting children under 15.
  • The chamber rejected a defense bid to stay the case, held the first confirmation hearing in absentia in September, and suspended appeal timelines until Kony is notified upon surrender.
  • Kony remains the ICC’s longest‑standing fugitive since a 2005 arrest warrant, as prosecutors vow continued pursuit and some victims describe the step as largely symbolic without an arrest.