Overview

• The International Criminal Court began a three‑day confirmation‑of‑charges hearing in The Hague without Joseph Kony present.
• Defense lawyer Peter Haynes urged a conditional suspension, arguing Kony cannot contest evidence in absentia and that his mandate is paradoxical without client instructions.
• Prosecutors say proceeding now would speed any future trial if Kony is apprehended, and victim representatives called the step a meaningful acknowledgment of harms.
• Nearly 6,000 victims are participating in the case, but reparations would require a conviction, which cannot occur unless Kony is surrendered to the court.
• Judges will decide in the coming months whether to confirm charges covering alleged crimes in northern Uganda from 2002 to 2005, including murder, rape, torture, enslavement and sexual slavery, with the LRA blamed by the UN for over 100,000 deaths and about 60,000 child abductions.