ICC Defends Call for Sudan Pres. Arrest

ANCHOR:
It seems like an impossible mission: to arrest the current president of Sudan on suspicions of masterminding crimes against humanity. But the International Criminal Court's Chief Prosecutor wants to do just that.

In the days since the announcement, Sudan has sought to delay or defeat the Chief Prosecutor's effort. Sudan says an arrest of the Sudanese President could harm the peace process in Darfur. Here's more:

STORY:
Sudan has asked all its friends and allies to help stop the ICC's arrest warrant.

China may head up an effort within the U.N. Security Council. And diplomats in New Yorkhave said that Sudan may force peacekeepers out of Darfur if the Security Council does not intervene.

Diplomats in New York also say the Arab League and the African Union are expected to ask the U.N. Security Council to block any ICC moves against Sudan.

Last Thursday, the ICC's Chief Prosecutor defended his call for the Sudanese President, Omar al-Bashir's, arrest.

[Luis Moreno-ocampo, Chief Prosecutor, ICC]:
"Haroun, who was the minister who coordinated the attacks in the village in 2004, and basically displaced all of them is, since September 2005, so it's in the end of the cleansing of the village, he's in charge of the camps. He's managing the camps. He is controlling the people he displaced. Bashir publicly said in 2007 that Haroun was following his instructions, that he would never hand over Haroun because Haroun was following his instructions. So it was like a confession, a public confession of what he did."

The Darfur conflict has killed 35,000 people outright, at least another 100,000 through a "slow death," and forced 2.5 million to flee their homes in Sudan's western Darfur region.

Category:

News & Politics

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• ICC
• sudan
• president
• arrest
• crimes
• International
• criminal
• court
• Darfur