By Editorial
The president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, has appointed a former militia leader, once convicted of war crimes, as his new defense minister.
Jean Pierre Bemba, a former Congolese vice-president, was cleared on appeal by the International Criminal Court in 2018 after being convicted of failing to prevent his militia from committing crimes.
His appointment comes as the Congolese army battles the Rwandan-backed M23 rebels in the east of the country.
Meanwhile, South African opposition minority party, the Economic Freedom Fighters has said Russian President Vladimir Putin is welcome to visit Pretoria despite an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against him.
The ICC, which South Africa is a signatory to, has accused Mr. Putin of war crimes, which include the kidnapping of Ukrainian children in Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
The Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema said yesterday that no one was going to arrest Mr. Putin while in South Africa, a country where Russia “played a huge role to support in the struggle for freedom”. END.
