THE HAGUE, Netherlands (CN) — Urging the International Criminal Court to move forward with proceedings against Mahamat Said Abdel Kani, the court's top prosecutor on Thursday described allegations that the leader of a predominantly Muslim rebel group in the Central African Republic known as the Seleka kept prisoners in a torture pit under his desk.
“It is a detention case, and we say the evidence overwhelmingly shows that Mr. Said was in the room where it happened. The hole below is the location where many of those unfortunate souls were placed in terrible conditions without toilet, food or any type of care," chief prosecutor Karim Khan said.
Khan began his term in June, and Thursday marked the British jurist’s first official appearance before the court.
The defendant meanwhile had his first appearance before the court at The Hague in January, days after he handed himself over authorities in the CAR to face charges: 14 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
On Thursday, Said was unexpressive while wearing a blue surgical mask and a gray suit.
The Central African Republic is a former French colony that has been ruled by largely autocratic leaders since it declared its independence in 1960. Attempts to bring democratic reforms in the 1990s led to the outbreak of bloodshed, with civil war breaking out first in 2004. Hostilities have been sporadic, however, and the defense argues that the Seleka was more of a loose organization than a military force.
“We will establish that there is nothing to determine the existence of an armed conflict between March and September 2013. And no conflict means no war crime,” defense counsel Jennifer Naouri told the court.
As the prosecution tells it, civil war in the country has been ongoing since late 2012 — shortly before Seleka forces ousted President François Bozizé and took control of the capital.
This is the ICC’s second investigation into crimes in the former French colony. The court had previously looked into events that took place before 2012, ultimately convicting the vice president of the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo, Jean-Pierre Bemba.
The former military commander was accused of being responsible for murder, rape and pillaging by his troops in the CAR when his forces were asked to put down a coup attempt. His conviction was overturned on appeal in 2018 as a result of legal errors. He was later convicted of witness tampering.
Begun in 2014, the investigation that led to Said’s indictment has also charged Patrice-Edouard Ngaïssona and Alfred Yékatom, whose trial opened in March. The pair, both pro-Christian militia leaders, are charged with dozens of charges of murder, torture and the destruction of religious sites. Christian militias, known as the anti-Balaka, began to organize attacks against the Seleka in 2013. The conflict has killed more than 5,000 people and left more than 1.1 million people displaced in a country of only 5 million.
The pre-trial chamber will give its decision on Said's case within 60 days.
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