APRNEWS - Belgium is prepared to accept former Democratic Republic of Congo vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba, after he was cleared of war crimes last week, Foreign Affairs Minister Didier Reynders disclosed on Thursday.

APRNEWS - Judges at the International Criminal Court ordered for the release of Congolese ex-vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba following his acquittal last week on war crimes charges.

According to the court order, issued on Tuesday, Bemba will be freed in neighbouring Belgium, where his family lives.

APRNEWS - Lawyers for Jean-Pierre Bemba, the Congolese ex-vice president whose war crimes conviction was quashed on appeal last week, requested his immediate release on Tuesday from the International Criminal Court.