International Criminal Court sets first trial

(CNN) - The International Criminal Court has scheduled its first trial
later this month when it tries a former militia leader in the Democratic
Republic of Congo, the volatile African country wracked by civil warfare over
the years.

The Hague-based court said the trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo will begin
on Jan. 26.

Lubanga is charged with committing war crimes consisting of conscripting
and enlisting children under the age of 15 into the military wing of the Union
of Congolese Patriots in the country's eastern Ituri region.

He used the children to "participate actively in hostilities in Ituri,
from September 2002 to August 2003." Lubanga was arrested and surrendered in
March 2006.

The International Criminal Court, which started in 2002, was formed to
try "persons accused of the most serious crimes of international concern,
namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. It is based on a
treaty joined by 108 countries.