The International Criminal Court will on Thursday sentence a child soldier turned Lord's Resistance Army commander for a litany of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Uganda.

Dominic Ongwen, 45, was found guilty in February of 61 charges including murders, rapes and sexual enslavement during a reign of terror in the early 2000s by the LRA, led by the fugitive Joseph Kony.

Prosecutors have asked for a 20-year prison term, saying Ongwen's own history as a schoolboy abducted by the LRA justifies a lower sentence than the maximum 30 years to life allowed by the ICC.

"This is one circumstance that sets this case apart from all the others tried at this court," ICC prosecution lawyer Colin Black told a sentencing hearing at the Hague-based court in April.

The defence is seeking a 10-year prison term for Ongwen, who went by the nom de guerre "White Ant" during attacks by his soldiers on refugee camps in northern Uganda.

Victims of his crimes have asked the court to impose the full life sentence.

Ongwen told the court that the LRA forced him to eat beans soaked with the blood of the first people he was made to kill as part of a brutal initiation following his own abduction aged nine.

"I am before this international court with so many charges, and yet I am the first victim of child abduction. What happened to me I do not even believe happened to Jesus Christ," Ongwen said.

'Gravity of the crimes'

The LRA was founded three decades ago by former Catholic altar boy and self-styled prophet Kony, who launched a bloody rebellion in northern Uganda against President Yoweri Museveni.

Its brutal campaign to set up a state based on the Bible's Ten Commandments left more than 100,000 people dead and 60,000 children abducted, eventually spreading to Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic.

Judges said in their verdict in February that Ongwen personally ordered his soldiers to carry out massacres of more than 130 civilians at the Lukodi, Pajule, Odek, and Abok refugee camps between 2002 and 2005.

Civilians were locked in their homes and burned to death or beaten during the massacres, while mothers were made to transport the LRA's loot, forcing them to abandon their infant children by the roadside.

Ongwen was also the first person convicted by the ICC of the crime of forced pregnancy, for abducting and raping so-called "wives", some of whom were underage.

Prosecutor Black said that Ongwen's own history as a child soldier "does not in any way diminish the gravity of the crimes, nor does it diminish his criminal culpability".

"Nevertheless we consider them to be exceptional individual circumstances of a kind that warrant a significant reduction in sentence," he added.

Ongwen surrendered to US special forces who were hunting Kony in the Central African Republic in early 2015 and he was transferred to the ICC to face trial.

The International Criminal Court will on Thursday sentence a child soldier turned Lord's Resistance Army commander for a litany of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Uganda.

The International Criminal Court will on Thursday sentence a child soldier turned Lord's Resistance Army commander for a litany of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Uganda. Dominic Ongwen, 45, was found guilty in February of 61 charges including murders, rapes and sexual enslavement during a reign of terror in the early 2000s by the LRA, led by the fugitive Joseph Kony. Prosecutors have asked for a 20-year prison term, saying Ongwen's own history as a schoolboy abducted by the LRA justifies a lower sentence than the maximum 30 years to life allowed by the ICC. "This is one circumstance that sets this case apart from all the others tried at this court," ICC prosecution lawyer Colin Black told a sentencing hearing at the Hague-based court in April. The defence is seeking a 10-year prison term for Ongwen, who went by the nom de guerre "White Ant" during attacks by his soldiers on refugee camps in northern Uganda. Victims of his crimes have asked the court to impose the full life sentence. Ongwen told the court that the LRA forced him to eat beans soaked with the blood of the first people he was made to kill as part of a brutal initiation following his own abduction aged nine. "I am before this international court with so many charges, and yet I am the first victim of child abduction. What happened to me I do not even believe happened to Jesus Christ," Ongwen said. 'Gravity of the crimes' The LRA was founded three decades ago by former Catholic altar boy and self-styled prophet Kony, who launched a bloody rebellion in northern Uganda against President Yoweri Museveni. Its brutal campaign to set up a state based on the Bible's Ten Commandments left more than 100,000 people dead and 60,000 children abducted, eventually spreading to Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic. Judges said in their verdict in February that Ongwen personally ordered his soldiers to carry out massacres of more than 130 civilians at the Lukodi, Pajule, Odek, and Abok refugee camps between 2002 and 2005. Civilians were locked in their homes and burned to death or beaten during the massacres, while mothers were made to transport the LRA's loot, forcing them to abandon their infant children by the roadside. Ongwen was also the first person convicted by the ICC of the crime of forced pregnancy, for abducting and raping so-called "wives", some of whom were underage. Prosecutor Black said that Ongwen's own history as a child soldier "does not in any way diminish the gravity of the crimes, nor does it diminish his criminal culpability". "Nevertheless we consider them to be exceptional individual circumstances of a kind that warrant a significant reduction in sentence," he added. Ongwen surrendered to US special forces who were hunting Kony in the Central African Republic in early 2015 and he was transferred to the ICC to face trial.

Lord's Resistance Army commander faces sentence for war crimes in Uganda

Lord&#39;s Resistance Army rebels (LRA) have kidnapped 17 people from a village in eastern Central African Republic, a senior local official said on Thursday. 
 
The rebels are notorious for mutilating civilians and kidnapping children for use as fighters. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for the LRA&#39;s messianic leader, Joseph Kony, and other senior commanders. 
 
The rebels struck on Monday, snatching three people in the morning and forcing them to carry their goods before releasing them in the evening, said Ghislain Kolengo, prefect of Haut Mbomou region. 
 
&quot;Very early (on Tuesday), they attacked Kadjema village and kidnapped 17 people who are still in captivity. I hope that our forces in the area and the Ugandans will find these people and bring them back,&quot; Kolengo told Reuters. 
 
The population then fled the town, he said. 
 
The LRA is from northern Uganda but was driven out by a military offensive a decade ago. Today, its fighters roam a poorly policed area straddling the borders between Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. 
 
All three countries have faced their own conflicts and Uganda, another regional neighbour, said last week it planned to withdraw by the end of the year its troops involved in an operation to hunt down LRA rebels. 
 
The LRA has been weakened but its fighters still attack civilians. It has abducted nearly 350 this year, according to the LRA Crisis Tracker, which documents rebel attacks. 
 
Meanwhile, at least 11 were killed in clashes in the north of the country involving former rebel group called the Seleka, according to a brigade commander in the town of Ngaoudaye. 
 
The first clash happened on Sunday and led to the deaths of seven Seleka members who were leading cattle through the town en route for Cameroon. The former rebels took revenge, killing six civilians, said the commander, who declined to be named. 
 
Central African Republic descended into chaos in March 2013 when the predominantly Muslim Seleka seized power, triggering reprisals by &quot;anti-balaka&quot; Christian militias who drove tens of thousands of Muslims from the south. 
 
President Faustin-Archange Touad?ra took office in March after elections aimed at drawing a line under the crisis. 
(Reuters)

The rebels are notorious for mutilating civilians and kidnapping children for use as fighters. They have abducted 350 this year

Lord's Resistance Army rebels (LRA) have kidnapped 17 people from a village in eastern Central African Republic, a senior local official said on Thursday. The rebels are notorious for mutilating civilians and kidnapping children for use as fighters. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for the LRA's messianic leader, Joseph Kony, and other senior commanders. The rebels struck on Monday, snatching three people in the morning and forcing them to carry their goods before releasing them in the evening, said Ghislain Kolengo, prefect of Haut Mbomou region. "Very early (on Tuesday), they attacked Kadjema village and kidnapped 17 people who are still in captivity. I hope that our forces in the area and the Ugandans will find these people and bring them back," Kolengo told Reuters. The population then fled the town, he said. The LRA is from northern Uganda but was driven out by a military offensive a decade ago. Today, its fighters roam a poorly policed area straddling the borders between Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. All three countries have faced their own conflicts and Uganda, another regional neighbour, said last week it planned to withdraw by the end of the year its troops involved in an operation to hunt down LRA rebels. The LRA has been weakened but its fighters still attack civilians. It has abducted nearly 350 this year, according to the LRA Crisis Tracker, which documents rebel attacks. Meanwhile, at least 11 were killed in clashes in the north of the country involving former rebel group called the Seleka, according to a brigade commander in the town of Ngaoudaye. The first clash happened on Sunday and led to the deaths of seven Seleka members who were leading cattle through the town en route for Cameroon. The former rebels took revenge, killing six civilians, said the commander, who declined to be named. Central African Republic descended into chaos in March 2013 when the predominantly Muslim Seleka seized power, triggering reprisals by "anti-balaka" Christian militias who drove tens of thousands of Muslims from the south. President Faustin-Archange Touad?ra took office in March after elections aimed at drawing a line under the crisis. (Reuters)

Lord's Resistance Army rebels kidnap 17 in Central African Republic

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Lord's Resistance Army commander faces sentence for war crimes in Uganda

Lord's Resistance Army rebels kidnap 17 in Central African Republic