ICC acquits DR Congo's Bemba on appeal

The Hague: International war crimes judges on Friday acquitted former Congolese vice-president Jean-Pierre Bemba on appeal, overturning an 18-year sentence for war crimes committed in the Central African Republic in 2002-3.

"Mr Bemba cannot be held criminally responsible for the crimes committed by his troops in the Central African Republic," presiding judge Christine Van den Wyngaert told the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

"The Appeals Chamber in this instant reverses the conviction against Mr Bemba... and in relation to the remaining criminal acts it enters an acquittal," Judge Van den Wyngaert said.