ICC judges allow in absentia hearings for charges against Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony

Passersby walk under a projection that is part of the non-profit organization Invisible Children's "Kony 2012" viral video campaign, in New York April 20, 2012. REUTERS/Keith Bedford/File Photo

THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday ruled that prosecutors can bring a hearing on charges against fugitive Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony in his absence on Oct. 15.

Kony, the founder and leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), is the ICC's longest standing fugitive. An arrest warrant was issued against him in 2005 for 33 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

(Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg; Editing by Toby Chopra)