The International Criminal Court (ICC) has confirmed all 39 charges against Joseph Kony, the elusive leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and committed him to trial before a Trial Chamber.
The decision, issued by Pre-Trial Chamber III, marks a significant milestone in the long-standing case The Prosecutor v. Joseph Kony. However, the trial cannot proceed unless Kony is physically present before the Court, in accordance with the ICC Rome Statute, which prohibits trials in absentia.
The Pre-Trial Chamber, composed of Presiding Judge Althea Violet Alexis Windsor, Judge Iulia Antoanella Motoc and Judge Haykel Ben Mahfoudh, found substantial grounds to believe that Kony is responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed between 1 July 2002 and 31 December 2005 in northern Uganda.
Kony, a Ugandan national founded and led the LRA which waged a brutal insurgency in the Acholi, Lango and Teso sub-regions of northern Uganda. During this period, the LRA engaged in a prolonged armed conflict against the Uganda People’s Defence Force (UPDF) and local defense units. The Court noted that the group carried out a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population in areas perceived to support the Ugandan government.
The judges determined that Kony and his commanders agreed to target civilians to sustain the LRA’s operations, committing widespread atrocities, including abductions, sexual violence and the use of child soldiers.
According to the ruling, Kony faces 29 charges as an indirect co-perpetrator or for ordering and inducing the commission of crimes by the LRA. These include crimes against humanity such as murder, enslavement, torture, rape, forced marriage, forced pregnancy and persecution, and war crimes including attacks on civilians, use of child soldiers, sexual slavery, pillaging and destruction of property.
In addition, Kony is personally charged as a direct perpetrator for 10 counts involving two victims, covering crimes such as enslavement, rape, forced marriage, torture and persecution based on age and gender.
The Chamber rejected the Defence’s request to stay the proceedings, ruling that both the Defence and the Prosecution cannot appeal immediately. The time limit for any appeal will only begin once Kony is apprehended and notified of the decision.
The ICC first issued a warrant for Kony’s arrest under seal on 8 July 2005, which was later unsealed on 13 October 2005. On 12 December 2024, the Court scheduled the confirmation of charges hearing for 9 September 2025, to be held in his absence.
The confirmation hearing took place on 9 and 10 September 2025 at The Hague, with Defence Counsel Peter Haynes KC representing Kony. The Appeals Chamber had earlier upheld the decision allowing the confirmation process to proceed in absentia.
Despite the confirmation of charges, Joseph Kony remains at large, two decades after the ICC first sought his arrest. The Court’s ruling brings renewed international attention to one of Africa’s longest and most brutal insurgencies.
