Attempt to block Bashir arrest fails

President Omar al Bashir of Sudan will learn next week whether the International Criminal Court is to issue a warrant for his arrest.

The prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, requested a warrant last July for Bashir’s arrest on 10 charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

A pre-trial chamber at the court has been scrutinising the prosecutor’s unprecedented request and will issue its ruling on March 4.

As I reported here last month, a submission was lodged on behalf of citizens’ organisations in Sudan asking the court not to issue the arrest warrants.

This submission has been dismissed by the court. In its judgment here the court makes it clear that the application does not come within the court rules.

Leave to appeal was refused on February 19

It does not follow from this, of course, that arrest warrants will be issued — or that any arrest warrant would cover genocide, the most serious of the allegations against Bashir.

Nor does it follow that Bashir will ever be arrested, let alone tried.

Posted at February 23, 2009 05:14 PM