Sudan: Omar Al-Bashir, the ICC and the Future of Peace

13 February 2020
opinion

There were reports earlier this week that the Sudanese transitional government that took over the reins of power from the former dictator, Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir, has reached a peace agreement with various rebel movements that have been fighting against Khartoum for decades. One of the points in this agreement is for Khartoum to hand over al-Bashir to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, to answer to charges of genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, including rape and torture in the Darfur region of Sudan from 2003 to 2008. Mr Bashir is accused of having a direct role as the supreme commander of Sudan's armed forces in directing these atrocities. He was charged back in 2009, the first sitting head of state to be indicted by the ICC, and had been a wanted man ever since, only escaping arrest through unwillingness of a number of countries to arrest and hand him over.

This man had been the longest-ruling president of that Northeast African country, and throughout his 30-year rule with an iron fist, he and his ruling junta committed grave human rights violations, including summary execution of 28 generals of the Sudan Armed Forces on the heels of their ascent to power in June1989. They pursued war as a way to settle Sudan's intractable center-periphery political problems. They implemented a massively deadly, destructive and indiscriminate counter insurgency in Southern Sudan.

...

AllAfrica publishes around 400 reports a day from more than 100 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.