THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — International Criminal Court prosecutors are urging judges to proceed with the case against former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo and a government ex-minister on trial for their alleged involvement in deadly violence that erupted after the country's disputed 2010 presidential election.
The court's deputy prosecutor, James Stewart, told a three-judge panel Monday that the evidence so far is strong enough for the case to continue.
Lawyers for Gbagbo and former youth minister Charles Ble Goude have filed motions arguing that prosecutors presented insufficient evidence for the trial to continue and calling for the immediate acquittal of both men.
Gbagbo and Ble Goude have pleaded not guilty to four crimes against humanity charges, including murder and rape allegedly committed by pro-Gbagbo supporters during post-election violence that left 3,000 people dead.
