Sudan takes the first step toward becoming a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC)

Last updated on September 11th, 2021 at 07:56 am

The Cabinet’s decision to accept the Rome Statute marks a step forward in the long-awaited trial of Darfur conflict suspects, including former President Omar al-Bashir, for war crimes and genocide. The bill must yet be passed by Sudan’s ruling Sovereign Council and Cabinet in a joint sitting. They act as an interim parliament when they get together. The Cabinet did not provide a ratification timeline.

Sudan has been governed by a mixed military-civilian government since al-Bashir was deposed by the military in April 2019. That transitional administration, which promised democratic reforms, has previously stated that war crime suspects, including al-Bashir, will face the International Criminal Court (ICC), but the location of the trial is still up for negotiation with the Hague-based court.

On Twitter, Samantha Power, who won a Pulitzer Prize for her book on genocide and currently directs the United States Agency for International Development, praised the move as “BIG news.”

Power, who is visiting Sudan, wrote, “A revolution for “Freedom, Peace, and Justice” just took a vital step toward ending impunity. She was referring to the rebellion that resulted in the overthrow of al-Bashir. The judgment occurred two months after Fatou Bensouda, the then-prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, visited Khartoum and Darfur and asked the country’s transitional authorities to hand up suspects accused for war crimes and genocide in the Darfur crisis.

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The Darfur crisis began in 2003, when rebels from the territory’s ethnic Central and Sub-Saharan African communities launched an uprising against the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum, alleging oppression. Al-administration Bashir’s retaliated with aerial bombs and raids by janjaweed militias, who have been accused of horrific deaths and rapes. Hundreds of thousands of people were slain, and 2.7 million were displaced from their homes.

For allegedly masterminding the Darfur attack campaign, the court indicted al-Bashir with war crimes and genocide. Sudanese authorities launched their own probe into the Darfur violence last year. Two other senior figures from al-rule Bashir’s have been indicted by the court: Abdel-Rahim Muhammad Hussein, who served as interior and defense minister for much of the conflict, and Ahmed Haroun, who served as senior security chief at the time and later became the leader of al-ruling Bashir’s party. Hussein and Haroun have been detained in Khartoum since the Sudanese military toppled al-Bashir in April 2019 amid protester pressure.

The court also charged Abdulla Banda, a rebel leader whose whereabouts are unknown, and Ali Kushayb, a janjaweed commander who was charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes in May.