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14 July, 2008
THE HAGUE (AFP) - The International Criminal Court's top prosecutor Monday sought the arrest of Sudan's President Omar al-Beshir for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.
Beshir had "personally instructed" his forces to annihilate three ethnic groups in the western Sudanese region, prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo told journalists in The Hague, shortly after presenting his evidence to the court.
The president had ordered his forces "not to bring back any wounded or prisoners," he added. "He wanted to commit genocide."
The prosecutor's bold move came amid warnings it could enflame tensions in Darfur , undermine cooperation with the UN, and result in the expulsion of aid workers and peacekeepers in Sudan's troubled western region.
Sudan immediately rejected the bid as damaging to Darfur peace hopes, and Vice President Ali Osman Taha said the allegations were "misleading and false."
But British Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged the former British colony to cooperate with the court, which he said "has our support for its activities."
UN chief Ban Ki-moon said he expected Sudan to guarantee "the safety and security of all United Nations personnel and property," despite the prosecutor's request.
In Cairo, the Arab League said foreign ministers would hold an emergency meeting on Sudan on Saturday, while the White House reacted by urging all parties "to remain calm".
The Argentine prosecutor told journalists that "what happened in Darfur is a consequence of Beshir's will."
"The crime of genocide is a crime of intention. Beshir had the intention to destroy the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups," engaged in a rebellion in Darfur.
While Beshir claimed he was taking counter-insurgency measures, all his crimes were aimed at civilians and not rebel groups, said Moreno-Ocampo -- adding that the president's actions had victimised an estimated 2.5 million people.
Some 35,000 were killed and another 83,000 died of causes related to their displacement, such as starvation.
The prosecutor has requested a warrant on 10 counts, three of them for genocide. Charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity included allegations of murder, torture, attacks against civilians, and pillaging.The three judges of the court will now examine the application to ascertain whether there are sufficient grounds for issuing a warrant, a process the prosecutor said he expects to take two to three months.
If charges are brought, it would be the first time the ICC had indicted a sitting head of state since its creation in 2002. Two other presidents, Slobodan Milosevic of Serbia and Liberia's Charles Taylor, were charged by other international war crimes courts.
The Sudanese government, which is under a United Nations-imposed obligation to execute any resulting warrants, has refused to surrender two suspects named last year for war crimes in Darfur.
If Khartoum refused to co-operate, said the prosecutor, "the UN Security Council will have to analyse how to ensure compliance".
Moreno-Ocampo accused Beshir of using state machinery, including the army and intelligence services, as well as the Janjaweed militia to execute his plan.
"They all report to him. They all obey him. His control is absolute," he said.
Beshir, 64, came to power in Africa's biggest country when he toppled a democratically elected government in a bloodless coup on June 30, 1989.
His regime introduced Sudan to a more radical brand of Islam and elements of Sharia law, alienating Christians and animists in the south and many in the northern Arab elite who grew up under British rule.
The conflict in Darfur began in 2003 when ethnic minority rebels took up arms against the Arab-dominated regime, for a greater share of resources and power.
Moreno-Ocampo said the prosecution had collected evidence showing that Beshir's target group, some 2.5 million people who now find themselves in camps for those displaced by war, were being attacked with the aim of elimination.
"Three main weapons are used to attack them in the camps: rape, hunger, fear," the prosecutor said.
"They are the most effective methods to commit genocide today, in front of our eyes."
The UN says up to 300,000 people have died since the Darfur conflict broke out in February 2003. The Sudanese government puts the death toll at 10,000.
Meanwhile, Western embassies made plans for the evacuation of diplomatic missions and advised their nationals to limit unnecessary travel, while the UN stepped up its security levels in Sudan.