Amsterdam - The defence team of former Congolese militia leader Thomas Lubanga Dyilo is due to address the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the first time on Tuesday.

Lubanga is standing trial at the ICC in The Hague on charges of recruiting child soldiers for war in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

According to the prosecution, Lubanga was responsible for the development and operation of an entire child soldier infrastructure during the bloody Congolese civil war between 1998 and 2003.

On Monday, the first day of the trial, Lubanga pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Lubanga, 48, is the first suspect to be brought for trial before the ICC, the world's first permanent tribunal authorized to deal with serious war crimes and crimes against humanity.

He was arrested in the Congolese capital Kinshasa in 2005. He has been in the custody of the ICC since March 2006.

Lubanga faces six charges in total of recruiting and using children in the final years of the civil war. (dpa)