20 November 2008
The International Criminal Court (ICC), which is already considering charges against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir arising out of the war in Darfur, has now been asked to examine evidence that Darfur rebel commanders have committed war crimes.
The ICC's prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, announced on Thursday that he was presenting evidence to judges relating to an attack on an African Union base in September 2007 in which 12 peacekeepers were killed.
Moreno-Ocampo said 1,000 Darfur rebels had surrounded and attacked the Haskanita camp in North Darfur.
There were reasonable grounds to believe, he said, that rebel commanders "bear criminal responsibility in relation to three counts of alleged war crimes for murder, intentionally directing attacks against personnel and objects involved in a peacekeeping mission and pillaging."
Such acts constituted war crimes under the Rome Statute, which set up the ICC, Moreno-Ocampo said. “I will not let such attacks go unpunished”, he added.
In July this year, Moreno-Ocampo accused Bashir of genocide and war crimes.
The ICC is still considering his request for an arrest warrant.
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