“I was informed of these crimes, but I plead not guilty,” as reported by The Guardian.
Judge Ekatarina Trendafilova told him he did not have to enter a plea at the hearing.
The actual case will begin September 23, when judges will decide whether the case should go to trial.
Ntaganda’s lawyer, Hassane Bel Lakhdar, meanwhile, wants him to be released in the meantime. “My client surrendered to the court voluntarily,” he said. “The charges against him right now are very significant, very serious and we must be given the possibility to meet and discuss directly with our client.”
The former leader of the rebels, Thomas Lubanga, was the first conviction of ICC and was sentenced to 14 year imprisonment. Ntaganda, meanwhile, was indicted in 2006, for using child soldiers, after which he joined the Congolese army until further charges regarding murder, rape, and sexual enslavement ended that career.