THE HAGUE, Netherlands: The International Criminal Court on Tuesday welcomed wanted DR Congo rebel Bosco Ntaganda's surrender to the US embassy in Kigali and said they wanted him transferred to The Hague as soon as possible.

"The ICC welcomes news of Bosco (Ntaganda's) surrender," the Office of the Prosecutor said in an email to AFP. "We will liaise with the relevant authorities in the region to facilitate his immediate surrender to the ICC."

"This is great news for the people of the DR Congo who had to suffer from the crimes of an ICC fugitive for too long," it added.

Ntaganda, who is wanted by the ICC for a string of alleged atrocities, surrendered to the US embassy in the Rwandan capital on Monday.

US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said he has asked to be transferred to the ICC -- the world's permanent independent war crimes court -- and Washington is in contact with the ICC and the Rwandan government.

DR Congo officials said Sunday that Ntaganda had fled to neighbouring Rwanda, which has been accused by Kinshasa and the United Nations of masterminding, arming and even commanding M23 rebels in the resource-rich east of the vast country.

Ntaganda, a former general nicknamed "The Terminator" and widely seen as the instigator of the M23 group's rebellion against Kinshasa last year, is wanted by the ICC on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity including rape, murder and recruiting child soldiers.