Central African Republic - November 2022

A Special Criminal Court with jurisdiction over war crimes committed in the Central African Republic (CAR) since 2003 has delivered its first verdict. The court was established in 2015 with the assistance of the United Nations and is staffed by both national and international prosecutors and judges. In this case, three members of an armed group called Retour, Réclamation et Réhabilitation (3R) had been charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity for their role in killings and other atrocities committed in May 2019. These atrocities took place in the context of a series of diffuse conflicts across the country. 3R has controlled territory in the north-west since 2016.   Two of the defendants were found guilty of “murder, inhumane acts and humiliating and degrading treatment,” and sentenced to 20 years in prison, while the more senior defendant was additionally found to be culpable for rapes committed by his subordinates and sentenced to life in prison. The defendants have appealed the verdict.

Sources: Radio France Internationale, Deutsche Welle, United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Human Rights Watch