International court orders that Congolese warlord be set free

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The International Criminal Court on Wednesday ordered the release of the first suspect it took into custody, saying he cannot get a fair trial because prosecutors are withholding evidence.

The order to free Congolese militia leader Thomas Lubanga was a major blow to prosecutors.

His trial was to be the first at the court focusing solely on the use of child soldiers.

Prosecutors immediately filed an appeal, which will keep Lubanga in custody for at least five days while the court decides what to do next.

His landmark trial was to have been the first at the world’s first permanent war crimes tribunal, but the proceeding was suspended before it began last month after the prosecution refused to release documents provided by the United Nations that could help clear Lubanga.

Prosecutors charged him with conscripting and sending children under age 15 to fight in bloody conflicts in Congo’s Ituri region in 2002-03.