| WASHINGTON (BP)--The prosecutor for the International Criminal Court requested an arrest warrant July 14 for the president of Sudan's militant Islamic regime, charging him with genocidal acts in Darfur. In presenting his case, the prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo of Argentina, charged Omar Hassan al-Bashir with genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. During the last five years, al-Bashier oversaw and promoted a campaign substantially focused on destroying the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups in Darfur, according to Moreno-Ocampo's evidence. Darfur, in the western region of Sudan, has been the scene of a grave humanitarian crisis since 2003, when government-sponsored militias, known as Janjaweed, began what President Bush has described as "genocide" in response to rebel attacks on government bases. The crisis in Darfur is based on ethnic differences, with the Arab Muslim militias raping, kidnapping, bombing and murdering African Muslims. It has been estimated more than 400,000 people have died and nearly 2.5 million have been displaced in refugee camps in the area. Speaking of al-Bashir, the prosecutor said in a written release from the International Criminal Court (ICC), "He used the whole state apparatus, he used the army, he enrolled the Militia/Janjaweed. They all report to him, they all obey him. His control is absolute. "His motives were largely political. His alibi was a 'counterinsurgency.' His intent was genocide," Moreno-Ocampo said. "In the camps al-Bashir's forces kill the men and rape the women. He wants to end the history of the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa people. I don't have the luxury to look away." ICC judges will review the prosecutor's charges against al-Bashir to decide if there are "reasonable grounds" to believe he committed such crimes and to determine the means of a court appearance by him. Sudan's regime quickly denied the charges. "We will resist this," said Rabie Atti, a Sudanese spokesman, according to The New York Times. "Everybody in Sudan -- the government, the people, even the opposition parties -- are against this." The United States is not a member of the ICC, which consists of 106 countries and was formally established in 2002. The Bush administration has opposed ICC membership because of concerns about its impact on U.S. sovereignty. A Southern Baptist public policy leader applauded Moreno-Ocampo's action. "While I have concerns about the jurisdictional authority of the International Criminal Court, I certainly commend the prosecutor for his determination to hold President al-Bashir accountable for his shameful role in the ongoing tragedy of Darfur," said Barrett Duke, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission's vice president for public policy and research. "While President al-Bashir promises many things to resolve this horrific situation, he follows through on practically none of them. "With every passing day the suffering of the people in Darfur increases," Duke said. "It is past time for President al-Bashir and his regime to feel the full force of outrage that exists in most of the rest of the world over the atrocities committed under his rule." Continued... |