[JURIST] Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] on Friday granted early release [decision, PDF; press release] to convicted war criminal Germain Katanga from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). A three-judge panel of the Appeals Chamber of the ICC conducted a review of Katanga’s sentence [ICC case materials] under the guidelines provided in Rome Statute Article 110 [text] that allow for judicial review of a sentencing term after the person has served two-thirds of their sentence. The judges decided that Katanga’s sentence would be completed on January 16, 2016, after taking into consideration the time Katanga spent in detention before he was sentenced in May 2014 and a number of contributing factors outlined in the Rome Statute and the ICC rules of procedure and evidence. In March 2014 the ICC found Katanga guilty, as an accessory, within the meaning of article 25(3)(d) of the Rome Statute, of one count of crime against humanity (murder) and four counts of war crimes (murder, attacking a civilian population, destruction of property and pillaging) committed in February 2003 during the attack on the village of Bogoro, in the Ituri district of the DRC. Friday’s decision by the ICC marks the first time that an ICC convict has been released early [Reuters report] in its 13-year history.

The five-year war in the DRC [BBC backgrounder] between 1998-2003 was faught between government forces, supported by Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe, and rebels backed by Uganda and Rwanda. The conflict resulted in millions of deaths and allegations of war crimes against military leaders, for recruitment of child soldiers and crimes against humanity. In September the ICC opened proceedings [JURIST report] in the trial of ex-Congolese military leader Bosco Ntaganda [BBC profile]. Ntaganda denies the 18 charges [ICC case materials] levied against him.