ICC convicts pair over Central Africa war crimes
The ICC sentenced Yekatom to 15 years behind bars for 20 war crimes and crimes against humanity including murder and torture.
Ngaissona received a sentence of 12 years for 28 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Their militia, known as anti-Balaka or "anti-machete", were formed as vigilante self-defence groups after mainly Muslim rebels called the Seleka stormed the capital Bangui and removed then-president Francois Bozize, a Christian.
Presiding judge Bertram Schmitt read harrowing details of the violence committed by the militia against suspected Seleka Muslims.
Yekatom's men tortured one suspect by cutting off his fingers, toes, and one ear. This man's body was never found. Others were killed and then mutilated.
Appearing in court dressed in a light brown suit and waistcoat, white shirt, and dark tie, Yekatom listened impassively as the judge read out the verdict.
Dressed in a bright blue jacket, Ngaissona nodded to the judge as his sentence was delivered.
The court found Yekatom not guilty of conscripting child soldiers and acquitted Ngaissona of the charge of rape.
Both men had pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Yekatom was extradited to The Hague in late 2018, after being arrested in the CAR for firing his gun in parliament.
Ngaissona was arrested in France in December 2018 and extradited to The Hague. At the time he was head of the CAR football association and a board member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
The Central African Republic is among the poorest nations in the world and has endured a succession of civil wars and authoritarian governments since independence in 1960.
Violence has subsided in recent years but fighting occasionally erupts in remote regions between rebels and the national army, which is backed by Russian mercenaries and Rwandan troops.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
LeMonde
an hour ago
- LeMonde
Gaza student leaves France over anti-Semitic posts row
A student from Gaza who had been studying in France on a scholarship left for Qatar Sunday, August 3, ordered out over anti-Semitic comments found on her social media accounts, the French foreign ministry said. Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot "stressed the unacceptable nature of the comments made by Ms. Nour Attaalah, a Gazan student, before she entered French territory," said the ministry statement. "Given their seriousness, Ms. Attaalah could not remain on French territory. She left France today to go to Qatar to continue her studies there," it added. The young woman, who received a student visa and a government scholarship as part of a program for Gazan students, had been due to join Sciences Po Lille in the fall. She arrived in France on July 11, according to a French diplomatic source. But social media posts from the past two years calling for the killing of Jews, since deleted, were discovered. That led to a judicial investigation for condoning terrorism, and an inquiry to determine why the posts had not been detected in advance. AFP was unable to confirm the screen shots attributed to her by internet users and media outlets, but Sciences Po Lille said Wednesday that her social media comments had been confirmed, without elaborating. Barrot said Friday that France was freezing all its student evacuation programs from Gaza pending the outcome of the investigation into how the posts had been missed. The foreign ministry would not say how many students have been affected, citing privacy reasons. France has allowed in several hundred students from Gaza since the start of the war between Israel and the Hamas movement.
France 24
3 hours ago
- France 24
Sweida: Clashes rattle civilians as truce frays
09:19 03/08/2025 Israeli minister Ben-Gvir says he prayed at flashpoint holy site Middle East 03/08/2025 Humanitarian needs escalate in Sweida as truce frays Middle East 03/08/2025 'We want this war to be over': Israeli hostage families protest in Tel Aviv Middle East 03/08/2025 'My children sleep without food': Gaza aid fails to reach most desperate Middle East 03/08/2025 'Famine is unfolding. It's not pending anymore': Why isn't enough food reaching people in Gaza? Middle East 02/08/2025 FRANCE 24 report in Sweida: Tens of thousands displaced since clashes began Middle East 02/08/2025 Italy to begin air drops of aid into Gaza, minister says Middle East 01/08/2025 Trump's envoy visits an aid distribution center in the war-ravaged Gaza Strip Middle East 01/08/2025 France sending 40 tonnes of humanitarian aid to Gaza, foreign minister says Middle East
France 24
4 hours ago
- France 24
Hamas Israeli hostage videos 'appalling', EU foreign affairs chief Kallas says
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas on Sunday denounced videos released by Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad showing two emaciated hostages held in Gaza as "appalling" and called for the release of all remaining captives after nearly 22 months of war. The two Palestinian militant groups have over the past few days released three videos showing two hostages seized during the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the ongoing war in Gaza. The images of Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David have sparked strong reactions among Israelis, fuelling renewed calls to reach a truce and hostage release deal without delay. 'Famine is unfolding. It's not pending anymore': Why isn't enough food reaching people in Gaza? 15:25 A statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 's office late Saturday said he had spoken with the families of the two hostages and "expressed profound shock over the materials distributed by the terror organisations". Netanyahu "told the families that the efforts to return all our hostages are ongoing", the statement added. Earlier in the day, tens of thousands of people had rallied in the coastal hub of Tel Aviv to urge Netanyahu's government to secure the release of the remaining captives. In the clips shared by the Palestinian Islamist groups, 21-year-old Braslavski, a German-Israeli dual national, and 24-year-old David both appear weak and malnourished. There was particular outrage in Israel over images of David, who appeared to be digging what he said in the staged video was his own grave. The videos make references to the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza, where UN-mandated experts have warned a "famine is unfolding". Kallas said the images "are appalling and expose the barbarity of Hamas", calling for the release of "all hostages ... immediately and unconditionally". 'Hamas must disarm' Kallas said in the same post on X that "Hamas must disarm and end its rule in Gaza" – demands endorsed earlier this week by Arab countries, including key mediators Qatar and Egypt. She added that "large-scale humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those in need". Israel has heavily restricted the entry of aid into Gaza, which was already under blockade for 15 years before the war began. Six more people died of starvation and malnutrition in the besieged territory over the past 24 hours, its health ministry said, raising the toll of those starving to death to 175, including 93 children, since the war began, according to the ministry's figures. 'My children sleep without food': Gaza aid fails to reach most desperate 02:26 On Sunday, Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli troops killed nine Palestinians who were waiting to collect food rations from a site operated by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) near the southern city of Rafah. "The soldiers opened fire on people. I was there, no one posed any threat" to the Israeli forces, 31-year-old witness Jabr al-Shaer told AFP by phone. There was no comment from the military. Five more people were killed near a different GHF aid site in central Gaza on Sunday, while Israeli attacks elsewhere killed another five people, said civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal. 'Emaciated and desperate' Israeli newspapers dedicated their front pages on Sunday to the plight of the hostages, with Maariv decrying "hell in Gaza" and Yedioth Ahronoth showing a "malnourished, emaciated and desperate" David. Left-leaning Haaretz declared that "Netanyahu is in no rush" to rescue the captives, echoing claims by critics that the longtime leader has prolonged the war for his own political survival. Braslavski and David are among the 49 hostages taken during Hamas's 2023 attack who are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Most of the 251 hostages seized in the attack have been released during two short-lived truces in the war, some in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli custody. Hamas's 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to a tally based on official figures. Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed at least 60,430 people, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry, deemed reliable by the UN. 'Provocation' In Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on Sunday, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said in a filmed statement that "the response to Hamas's horror videos" should include Gaza's occupation and plans for the "voluntary emigration" of its people. The video was taken at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, Islam's third-holiest site, which is also revered by Jews as the Temple Mount, though they are barred from praying there under a long-standing convention. Jordan, which acts as the site's custodian, condemned the minister's latest visit there as "an unacceptable provocation", while Hamas called it "a deepening of the ongoing aggression against our Palestinian people". Netanyahu's office said in a statement that "Israel's policy of maintaining the status quo on the Temple Mount has not changed and will not change".
