THE HAGUE, Mar 22 : Former Congolese vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba was on Monday found guilty of a ruthless campaign of widespread rapes and killings by his private army in the Central African Republic, in a landmark war crimes verdict. It is the first case at the International Criminal Court to highlight both sexual violence as a weapon of war and a military commander's overall responsibility for the actions of his troops, and was swiftly welcomed by rights groups.
The judges found Bemba guilty on all five charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, saying he had retained "effective command and control" over 1,500 men he sent in to CAR to quell an attempted coup against the then president.     ?AFP