A French court has acquitted former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of procuring prostitutes for sex parties in France, Belgium and the US.

Strauss-Kahn stood alongside 13 co-defendants, most of whom were also acquitted of "aggravated pimping", the BBC reported.

He has always denied knowing that some of the women who took part in orgies he attended were prostitutes.

The sexual habits of the former French presidential hopeful were at the centre of trial hearings in Lille in February.

Although using prostitutes is not illegal in France, assisting in supplying them is illegal and regarded as procuring. Mr Strauss-Kahn had been accused of playing a pivotal role in facilitating the orgies.

The verdict brings to a close four years of legal proceedings against Mr Strauss-Kahn, including charges of attempted rape which were later dropped in 2012.