ICC Prosecutors say militia leader played key role in Central African violence

Former Central African Republic militia leader Maxime Jeoffroy Eli Mokom Gawaka attends the International Criminal Court hearings to determine the exact charges it will bring against him, in The Hague, Netherlands, August 22, 2023. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw/Pool

THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court on Tuesday said a former militia leader played a key role in coordinating attacks on Muslim civilians in the Central African Republic.

Maxime Jeoffroy Eli Mokom Gawaka was handed over to the court in March 2022. A former national coordinator of so-called anti-balaka militias, he is accused of violently targeting the Muslim civilian population in 2013 and 2014.