[JURIST] Rwandan legal representatives arguing Monday at the beginnng of public hearings [press release] before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) [official website] at The Hague dismissed allegations that Rwandan troops had committed human rights violations in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and argued the world court did not have jurisdiction to hear the case. Congo filed suit with the ICJ in 2002 [ICJ press release], accusing Rwandan troops of armed aggression, mass slaughter, rape, arbitrary detentions, systematic looting and assassinations in Congo's civil war [backgrounder], which lasted between 1998 and 2003. The DRC is seeking a directive for any remaining Rwanda troops to leave the country and to pay reparations. For the ICJ to hear a case [ICJ jurisdiction rules], the states involved must be party to UN treaties and conventions. Reuters has more.