A three-judge chamber found evidence was strong enough to "establish substantial grounds to believe" that Thomas Lubanga was responsible "for war crimes consisting of enlisting and conscripting children under the age of 15," said presiding Judge Claude Jorda of France.

These children were forced to take part in armed conflicts, the court found.

Lubanga, now being held in a Dutch jail, faces three charges of recruiting and deploying child soldiers in the bloody conflict in the Ituri region of eastern Congo in 2002-2003. He faces a maximum life sentence if convicted.

The Japan Times Weekly: Feb. 3, 2007
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