The International Criminal Court (ICC) conviction of two anti-balaka militia leaders for serious crimes in the Central African Republic is an important step toward justice in the country, Human Rights Watch said today.
On July 24, 2025, ICC judges convicted Alfred Yékatom on charges involving 20 war crimes and crimes against humanity and Patrice-Edouard Ngaïssona on charges involving 28 war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Central African Republic between December 2013 and August 2014. The judges sentenced Yékatom to 15 years in prison and Ngaïssona to 12 years.
"The ICC's long-awaited first judgment for serious crimes committed in Central African Republic since 2012 provides an important measure of justice for victims of anti-balaka abuses," said Lewis Mudge, Central Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "But this verdict also highlights that more is needed, and both the ICC and courts in the Central African Republic should address the persistent accountability gap for serious crimes in the country."
The charges on which Yékatom and Ngaïssona have been convicted include murder, intentionally directing an attack against the civilian population, intentionally directing an attack against a religious building, deportation or forcible transfer of the population and displacement of the civilian population, and persecution. Yékatom and Ngaïssona were acquitted on some charges, notably, for Yékatom, enlisting child soldiers, and for Ngaïssona, rape.
After leaders from the majority Muslim Seleka ousted then-President François Bozizé in 2013, militias called anti-balaka engaged in brutal tit-for-tat attacks with the Seleka. During the fighting the anti-balaka targeted Muslim civilians, whom they perceived as supporting their enemies.
Human Rights Watch has documented war crimes and crimes against humanity by both Seleka and anti-balaka forces since 2013. Some of the most egregious abuses occurred in the central regions of the Central African Republic between late 2014 and April 2017. Human Rights Watch has documented hundreds of cases of rape and sexual slavery by anti-balaka groups and fighters from Seleka factions.
Yékatom, known as "Rombhot," was a master corporal in the national army before the conflict and promoted himself to "colonel" when he became a key anti-balaka leader in 2013. Ngaïssona, a former sports minister, was a self-declared political coordinator of the anti-balakas and later held a senior post at the Confederation of African Football. Human Rights Watch interviewed Ngaïssona on video on September 3, 2014, during which he did not contest that the anti-balaka were responsible for some abuses or that he was an anti-balaka leader.
The court should take all necessary steps to ensure that affected communities in the Central African Republic learn about the judgment and next steps, including any appeals and reparation proceedings, Human Rights Watch said.
Yékatom and Ngaïssona are the first anti-balaka leaders to be convicted by the ICC. Another anti-balaka commander, Maxim Mokom, was surrendered to the court in March 2022, but the prosecution withdrew the charges against him in October 2023, citing a lack of evidence and witnesses. The trial against a Seleka leader, Mahamat Said Abdel Kani, is ongoing. In January 2019, the ICC issued an arrest warrant against another Seleka leader, Noureddine Adam. The warrant against him was unsealed in July 2022, and he remains at large.
The ICC opened the investigation into crimes in the Central African Republic since 2012 following a request from the Central African Republic government in 2014. This was the ICC's second investigation into crimes committed in the country. The first investigation related to an earlier conflict, in 2002 and 2003, and resulted in the acquittal of Jean-Pierre Bemba, a former vice president from Congo. In December 2022, the ICC prosecutor announced the completion of his office's investigative activities in the Central African Republic.
ICC investigations in the Central African Republic have been complemented by proceedings before the Special Criminal Court in Bangui, staffed by international and Central African judges and prosecutors. The court, established to investigate and prosecute serious international crimes committed in the Central African Republic since 2003, began operations in 2018.
It has issued verdicts in three trials and has several ongoing investigations. On July 7, 2025, Special Criminal Court judges referred to trial the case against three anti-balaka leaders, including Edmond Beïna, for alleged crimes committed in Guen, Gadzi, and Djomo, in the Mambéré-Kadéï province in the southwestern part of the country, in February and March 2014. Beïna is also wanted by the ICC; the ICC Office of the Prosecutor and the Central African Republic government are currently litigating over jurisdiction for the case against him.
Yékatom and Ngaïssona's verdict comes as the ICC is under extreme pressure from Israel and the United States, following the court's issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024 on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. On February 6, 2025, US President Donald Trump issued an executive order that authorizes asset freezes and entry bans on ICC officials and others supporting the court's work.
"The verdict against Yékatom and Ngaïssona is an important step, but thousands of victims of atrocity crimes in Central African Republic still await justice," Mudge said. "ICC member countries and international partners should double down on their support for the ICC and the Special Criminal Court to ensure these institutions have the political backing and resources they need to carry out their critical mandates."
