Ex-child soldier jailed for war crimes

KAMPALA: The International Criminal Court (ICC) yesterday sentenced a former Ugandan child soldier who became a commander of the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) to 25 years in prison for crimes including rape, sexual enslavement, child abduction, torture and murder.

Dominic Ongwen, who was taken into ICC custody in 2015, was convicted in February of 61 out of 70 alleged crimes. Presiding Judge Bertram Schmitt said the panel had considered sentencing Ongwen to life imprisonment. Prosecutors had demanded he get at least 20 years in prison, while his defence argued he should get no more than a 10-year sentence.