THE HAGUE (Reuters) -Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court told judges on Tuesday that a suspected Seleka militia leader in the Central African Republic had complete control over a prison where inmates were arbitrarily detained and abused over a decade ago.
According to prosecutors, Mahamat Said Abdel Kani ran a prison where suspected supporters of then-President Francois Bozize were beaten and tortured.
In his closing arguments, Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang said documents and witness testimony during the trial had shown Said had full control over victims held in inhumane conditions in the prison and personally took part in the abuse.
“They were arrested arbitrarily for reasons of politics, ethnicity, religion, or gender. The evidence in this trial demonstrates that the victims of the crimes committed by Mr. Said were mostly of the Christian faith,” Niang told judges.
Said has denied seven charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. His defence will present their closing argument later this week.
The predominantly Muslim rebels known as Seleka, or “alliance” in the Sango language, seized power in 2013 as part of the Central African Republic’s long-running civil war, ousting Bozize.
Their rule gave rise to opposing “anti-Balaka” Christian-dominated militias. The ICC has been investigating the violence in the Central African Republic since May 2014. It has convicted two “anti-Balaka” leaders but Said is the first alleged Seleka member on trial.
(Reporting by Stephanie van den BergEditing by Ros Russell)
