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Arab bodies, Sudan slam ICC allegation against Sudanese president

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-07-15 09:56

The meeting will be held in response to the request by Sudan that was approved by Syria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Libya and the Palestinian National Authority, head of AL Secretary General Amr Moussa's office Hisham Yousef said Monday.

Related readings:  Court seeks arrest of Sudan's president  ICC prosecutor seeks charges against Sudan president  Sudan reiterates rejection of ICC jurisdiction  China's UN peacekeepers leave for Sudan

Samir Hosni, director of the Arab-African Cooperation Department of the pan-Arab bloc, said Monday that Moussa has been consulting with the Arab states for the preparation of the meeting.

Earlier on Sunday, the Arab Lawyers Union strongly slammed the ICC for its expected move to issue the arrest warrant against al- Bashir.

The ICC decision to charge al-Bashir with war crimes in Darfur is "a flagrant violation of international law, norms and human rights," the Arab Lawyers Union said in a statement.

The union also criticized the United States for its alleged role behind the ICC move, saying it's a US decision to punish al- Bashir for "his firm stand in defense of Sudan's just causes."

The United States is in an attempt to drag the ICC into a fight against al-Bashir, which contradicts the aim of the international court, said the statement.

However, US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Friday that the United States does not have anything to do with the ICC.

On Monday, the White House said that the United States will monitor the situation as the ICC prosecutor is seeking the arrest of al-Bashir on charges of war crimes.

"We urge all sides to remain calm. We will monitor the situation in The Hague and review what the prosecutor has requested, but we are not a part of the ICC," said US National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe.

The ICC move also stirred widespread concerns and condemns in Sudan. The Sudanese government has reiterated that it does not recognize the ICC and would refuse any decision or memorandum delivered by the court.

Sudan is not a party to the Rome Treaty establishing the ICC, the world's first permanent war crimes tribunal to try persons accused of the most serious crimes of international concern, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

But the UN Security Council decided in March 2005 to refer the Darfur situation to the ICC, a decision opposed by Sudan, which insisted on its own prosecution.

Sudan's Cabinet reiterated on Sunday that it does not recognize the ICC and will refuse any decision or memorandum delivered by the court.  

According to Sudanese official news agency SUNA, Sudanese Council of the States on Monday strongly denounced at an extraordinary meeting of Committee of the Council's Affairs the ICC move to indict Sudan's senior officials.

In the same day, Sudanese Vice President Ali Othman Mohammed Taha told a press conference that the ICC move is a politically- motivated one against Sudan instead of a legal one.

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