ICC to name first Darfur suspects on Tuesday /Remember Sudan?

[RestoreGore]

ICC to name first Darfur suspects on Tuesday By Emma Thomasson

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor will name the first suspects accused of committing war crimes in Sudan's Darfur region on Tuesday and human rights activists hope he will pursue senior figures.

Chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo is expected to submit to pre-trial judges evidence against several individuals of war crimes and crimes against humanity to support arrest warrants or summonses. He is due to hold a news conference at 1300 GMT.

Moreno-Ocampo said in December his investigators had found evidence of rape, torture, murder and sexual violence in Darfur. His announcement will be closely watched to see if he charges government figures as well as rebels.

"We eagerly await the prosecutor's recommendations for holding those responsible for the gravest crimes fully accountable," said Sudanese human rights lawyer Osman Hummaida.

Experts say some 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million others driven from their homes in Darfur since 2003, when rebels took up arms against the government, charging it with neglect. Khartoum says about 9,000 people have died.

In March 2005, the U.N. Security Council asked the ICC to launch an investigation into the violence in Darfur, which the United States has called genocide, a charge Khartoum denies.

"I hope the message that goes out from this action is that the days of absolute impunity that have existed for horrific crimes committed in Darfur are coming to an end," said Richard Dicker of New York-based Human Rights Watch.

U.N. and African Union observers blame pro-government militias, known as Janjaweed, for the worst atrocities.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070226/wl_nm/sudan_darfur_warcrimes_dc

More at the link

I think this is the way to go. I actually sent a letter to the ICC a few months ago, but do not know if they even got it because I read a few months ago this was being considered. I hope Bashir is named. It is time to take the next step to save the people of Sudan. And I wonder, how many threads about Sudan get posted here on average? I have yet to see one.

[Eugene]

1. Sudan rejects ICC authority over Darfur (AFP)

Sudan rejects ICC authority over Darfur

by Mohamed Hasni

Mon Feb 26, 6:09 AM ET

KHARTOUM (AFP) - Sudan on Monday rejected the legitimacy of the International
Criminal Court in pressing charges over the conflict in Darfur, still ravaged by war
and famine four years after the violence erupted.

Last week the ICC -- which is authorised to judge war crimes or crimes against
humanity if national jurisdiction lacks the ability to do so -- announced that its
prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will present evidence on Tuesday of alleged
war crimes committed in Darfur.

-snip-

But Sudan has rejected the ICC's authority, arguing that the country's judiciary
is perfectly capable of trying its own criminals.

"The position of Sudan is that this court has no jurisdiction when it comes to
trying Sudanese," Minister of Justice Mohammed Ali al-Mardhi was quoted by the
Akhbar al-Yom as saying.

-snip-

Full article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070226/wl_africa_afp/sudandarfuricc

[RestoreGore]

2. Yes, that was in the link I posted too.

NO JURISDICTION?

Sudan's Justice Minister Mohamed Ali al-Mardi was quoted as saying on Monday the ICC had no jurisdiction over its nationals and it would not allow anybody, including rebels, to be tried outside Sudan.

Sudanese media also reported Khartoum would put several people on trial next week, including military personnel and paramilitary troops, for suspected involvement in attacks in Darfur.

Moreno-Ocampo has said he would examine whether Sudan's government is conducting its own judicial proceedings over Darfur as the ICC is only supposed to prosecute when national courts are unwilling or unable to act.

Rights groups say Khartoum's own investigations and tribunals for crimes in Darfur have been largely for show.
~~~~~~~~~~
The question is, do we believe Khartoum?

[Eugene]

3. ICC names first two Darfur suspects (Reuters)

ICC names first two Darfur suspects
27 Feb 2007 10:39:06 GMT
Source: Reuters

AMSTERDAM, Feb 27 (Reuters) - The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor named
the first two suspects accused of committing war crimes in Sudan's Darfur region on Tuesday,
a former state interior minister and a militia commander.

Chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo asked pre-trial judges to issue summons against Ahmed
Haroun, state minister of interior during the height of the conflict, and militia commander
Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-al-Rahman, also known as Ali Kushayb.

In a written filing, he said there was reason to believe that the two "bear criminal responsibility
for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Darfur in 2003 and 2004".

Experts say some 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million others driven from their homes
in Darfur since 2003, when rebels took up arms against the government, charging it with neglect.
Khartoum says about 9,000 people have died.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L27226937.htm

[RestoreGore]

4. It's a start n/t

[RestoreGore]

5. Great to see that so many care about what is going on in Sudan

And yes, that was sarcasm.