ICC says awaiting al-Bashir’s handover by Sudanese authorities
Sudan’s president Omar al-Bashir looks on during The India-Africa Summit in New Delhi on January 2, 2014 (Photo by: Prakash Singh, AFP)
May 10, 2020 (SSNN) –The International Criminal Court said on Saturday, that it was “still awaiting a formal commitment and a serious move” from the Sudanese authorities to ensure that former president Omar al-Bashir and four other members of his regime appear in the Hague-based court to face justice.
Al-Bashir, who was overthrown by the military in 2019 after a public uprising, is wanted by the ICC on charges of crimes against humanity and genocide related to the Darfur conflict.
Since his overthrow last April, the former Sudanese dictator who ruled the country for nearly 30 years has been incarcerated in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, on charges of corruption and killing protesters.
The ICC asked the military rulers in Khartoum earlier this year to hand over al-Bashir and other suspects in the Darfur war crime charges. The Hague court prosecutor’s office said the position of the court on al-Bashir’s trial had not changed saying the Sudanese authorities have the obligation to handover al-Bashir.
“Our position on the trial of Al-Bashir in the Darfur case has not changed. The Sudanese authorities must submit a pledge to bring al-Bashir and 4 other officials of his regime to the court in the case of the Darfur region,” the office of Fatou Bensouda, the ICC prosecutor, said Sunday.
“Under the Rome Statute, we call on the Sudanese authorities to cooperate with the court in order to ensure justice for the victims of crimes in Darfur.”
Regarding the impact of the outbreak of the new Coruna virus, on the work of the Court, the Office of the Prosecutor said: “We abide by the measures imposed by the host country of the seat of the Court (Netherlands), in order to ensure continuity of work and to fulfill the obligations of the Court, while protecting the staff of the International Criminal Court.”
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