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Added on the 21/06/2016 16:25:31 - Copyright : France 24 EN
International war crimes judges acquit former Congolese vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba on appeal, overturning an 18-year sentence for war crimes committed in the Central African Republic in 2002-3. SOUNDBITE
The United Nations begins withdrawal of MONUSCO peacekeeping forces from the Democratic Republic of Congo by handing over a first UN base to the national police. During an official ceremony at the Kamanyola base, close to the Rwandan and Burundian borders, the flags of the United Nations and Pakistan, the countries of origin of the peacekeepers in charge, were replaced by those of the DRC. IMAGES
The United States warns Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo at the UN that they "must walk back from the brink of war" as tensions between the neighbors ratchet up. "Regional diplomatic efforts, not military conflict, are the only path to a negotiated solution and sustainable peace," says American envoy to the UN Robert Wood during a UNSC emergency meeting. SOUNDBITE
The International Criminal Court throws out an appeal by Dominic Ongwen, a Ugandan child soldier-turned-commander in the Lord's Resistance Army, against his conviction for war crimes. Dominic Ongwen, who was himself abducted aged nine by the rebel group led by the fugitive Joseph Kony, was found guilty last year of murder, rape and sexual enslavement in northern Uganda during the early 2000s. SOUNDBITE
German Justice Minister Marco Buschmann qualifies Russian strikes on Ukraine's energy supplies as "war crimes," after a meeting between G7 justice ministers concerning war crimes in Ukraine. "People are left in their homes, in a winter that could possibly reach -30 degrees; then this is a terrible war crime. Winter is used as a weapon," he states. SOUNDBITE
"This is a significant outcome for all victims of R. Kelly and especially for the survivors who so bravely testified about the horrific and sadistic abuse they endured," says Breon Peace, the US attorney for the Eastern District of New York, after the former R&B singer was sentenced to 30 years in prison for sex crimes. SOUNDBITE