The referral is the second time the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo has appealed to the ICC, after an initial referral in 2004 that convicted three former militia leaders.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague said on Thursday that it will examine war crimes allegations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo after the government made a formal request to the tribunal.

Prosecutor Karim Khan said Kinshasa asked prosecutors to "investigate particular armed forces and groups" allegedly responsible for war crimes in North Kivu province from January 1, 2022, to date.

"I intend to conduct a preliminary examination promptly," Khan said in a statement.

The referral is the second time the DRC government has appealed to the ICC, after an initial referral in 2004 that convicted three former militia leaders.

Khan said he will assess whether the two referrals are similar enough in scope to form a single investigation.

Fighting in North Kivu

Armed conflict has simmered for three decades in the mineral-rich North Kivu province and neighboring Ituri province.

The previous ICC investigation opened in 2004 led to the conviction of rebel leader Bosco "Terminator" Ntaganda, who was jailed for 30 years for mass murder, rape and abduction, as well as Thomas Lubanga Dyilo and Germain Katanga.

Fighting picked up again in the region in 2021, when the M23 rebel group captured swathes of territory in North Kivu.

Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of backing the group -- a view supported by independent United Nations experts and several western nations, including the United States. However, Rwanda denies the accusations.

But other groups are also active in North Kivu. Last month, local authorities the remains of at least 20 people in a mass grave near Beni who were believed to have been killed killed by fighters with the Allied Democratic Forces, a militia believed to be linked with the Islamic State group.

zc/jcg (AFP, AP)