ICC Convicts Former Seleka Commander of Crimes Against Humanity

International Criminal Court judges have convicted former Seleka commander Mahamat Said Abdel Kani of crimes against humanity, including torture, over abuses at a detention facility in Bangui.

THE HAGUE — International Criminal Court judges have convicted Mahamat Said Abdel Kani of crimes against humanity, including torture, for his role in operating a Seleka detention facility in Bangui during the Central African Republic’s 2013 civil war.

The 56-year-old Central African militia commander was found guilty on Wednesday over abuses linked to the Central Office for the Repression of Banditry. A separate hearing will determine his sentence.

Said, a senior figure in the Seleka coalition, denied the charges. The court acquitted him of three war crimes counts after judges concluded that the armed conflict had ended when some of the alleged offences took place.

Abuse at detention facility

ICC Judge Miatta Maria Samba said supporters of then-President Francois Bozize were rounded up and mistreated at the facility during the conflict. She said detainees were whipped, waterboarded and bound using a method known as Arbatacher.

Some prisoners were held in underground cells without bathrooms or showers. Describing the conditions, Samba said: “The floor was covered in waste, and it smelled of faeces and urine.”

The conviction concerns the court’s findings about Said’s role in the detention centre and the treatment of detainees. His sentence has not yet been announced.

Conflict background

The Seleka coalition ousted Bozize in 2013. The conflict that followed killed thousands of people, while Bozize’s response included arming the anti-Balaka militia, contributing to further bloodshed.

French troops helped secure the Central African Republic in 2014 under a United Nations mandate. The ICC began investigating violence in the country that same year.

Said is the first Seleka member to be convicted by the court. The ICC had previously convicted two anti-Balaka leaders, former Sports Minister Patrice-Edouard Ngaissona and former member of parliament Alfred Yekatom. Ngaissona received a 12-year sentence, while Yekatom was sentenced to 15 years.

The Central African Republic has experienced relative stability since a 2019 peace agreement, according to the source information.