Sudan president in Egypt
Güncelleme Tarihi:
AP
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mart 26, 2009 00:00
CAIRO- Egypt, one of the strongest U.S. allies in the Middle East, welcomed Sudan's president yesterday despite an international warrant seeking his arrest on charges of war crimes in the region of Darfur.
Omar al-Bashir was making his first high-profile journey abroad since the warrant was issued March 4 by the International Criminal Court. He was emboldened by the 22-nation Arab League's decision not to act on the warrant, though three of its member countries are signatories to the court's founding treaty. Al-Bashir is also planning to attend an Arab summit in Qatar at the end of the month, though the prime minister of that country says it is under pressure.
His visit to Egypt was another show of defiance by al-Bashir, who responded swiftly to the arrest warrant by expelling 13 international aid groups from Darfur, exposing hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the six-year conflict to the potential threat of greater humanitarian crisis.
The ICC charged al-Bashir with leading a counterinsurgency against Darfur rebels that has involved rapes, killings and other atrocities against civilians. His government has been accused of unleashing Arab militiamen known as janjaweed against Darfur civilians in a drive to put down a revolt by ethnic Africans in the western region.
Up to 300,000 people have died and 2.7 million have been driven from their homes since 2003, according to the U.N. Al-Bashir is expected to meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak during his one-day visit to discuss developments in Sudan.
Al-Bashir briefly visited the politically isolated African nation Eritrea on Monday - his first venture abroad since the warrant. But Egypt is a major U.S. ally in the Middle East and a heavyweight in the Arab world.
Meanwhile, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit renewed Egyptian opposition to the International Criminal Court's warrant for Beshir's arrest after a few hours of talks between the two leaders. "There is an Egyptian, Arab and African stance that does not accept the court's manner in dealing with the Sudanese president," Abul Gheit told reporters after the meeting.
The United States is also not a member of the court, but the White House and the State Department said that anyone who has committed atrocities should be held accountable.
Qatar's prime minister, Sheik Hamad Bin Jassem Al Thani, said his nation has been subjected to "pressure" not to receive al-Bashir at the March 27 Arab League summit, Qatar's official news agency reported, though Qatar is also not a signatory to the court's treaty.
His visit to Egypt was another show of defiance by al-Bashir, who responded swiftly to the arrest warrant by expelling 13 international aid groups from Darfur, exposing hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the six-year conflict to the potential threat of greater humanitarian crisis.
The ICC charged al-Bashir with leading a counterinsurgency against Darfur rebels that has involved rapes, killings and other atrocities against civilians. His government has been accused of unleashing Arab militiamen known as janjaweed against Darfur civilians in a drive to put down a revolt by ethnic Africans in the western region.
Up to 300,000 people have died and 2.7 million have been driven from their homes since 2003, according to the U.N. Al-Bashir is expected to meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak during his one-day visit to discuss developments in Sudan.
Al-Bashir briefly visited the politically isolated African nation Eritrea on Monday - his first venture abroad since the warrant. But Egypt is a major U.S. ally in the Middle East and a heavyweight in the Arab world.
Meanwhile, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit renewed Egyptian opposition to the International Criminal Court's warrant for Beshir's arrest after a few hours of talks between the two leaders. "There is an Egyptian, Arab and African stance that does not accept the court's manner in dealing with the Sudanese president," Abul Gheit told reporters after the meeting.
The United States is also not a member of the court, but the White House and the State Department said that anyone who has committed atrocities should be held accountable.
Qatar's prime minister, Sheik Hamad Bin Jassem Al Thani, said his nation has been subjected to "pressure" not to receive al-Bashir at the March 27 Arab League summit, Qatar's official news agency reported, though Qatar is also not a signatory to the court's treaty.