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Darfur (Part I): Opinions and Multimedia Coverage on Prosecutor's

07 Mar 2007

Dear All,

Following last week's request by the ICC Prosecutor for summonses for Ahmad
Muhammad Harun and Ali Muhammad Ali Abdal-Rahman, please find below a digest
(Part I) of (1) opinion pieces and analyses and (2) transcripts from multimedia
coverage (including television and radio). Part II will include a digest of
coverage from I-based publications and blogs.

Many thanks to CICC Communications Intern Corina Murafa for compiling these
digests.

Please take note of the Coalition's policy on situations before the ICC (below),
which explicitly states that the CICC will NOT take a position on potential or
pending situations before the Court. The Coalition, however, will continue to
provide the most up-to-date information about the ICC.

Warm Regards,
Esti Tambay
Information and Analysis Officer
Coalition for the International Criminal Court

****************************************************
I. OPINION ARTICLES

1. The Nation, Salih Mahmoud Osman, "Justice and Peace in Darfur," 7 March 2007
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20070319/osman

"[...] This alone is a profound step forward for those of us who struggle every
day to put an end to the worst crimes imaginable. But these announcements,
although welcome, are not sufficient. Moreno-Ocampo must initiate a sequence of
cases that will bring to light the extent and rapaciousness of what has been
done to Darfur and its people--and move further up the chain of command to those
ultimately responsible. The current list is simply too short and aims too low.
[...]
[...] Certainly the reality of potential indictments colors the climate of
calculation for the government. But for us--the people of Darfur who are
survivors and victims of this ongoing catastrophe--there is no confusion between
peace and justice. We believe that accountability must be an essential component
of any campaign to "save Darfur" and cannot be separated from political
negotiations, deployment of peacekeepers or humanitarian efforts. [...] Justice
along with security is the only way to stop the cycle of impunity and violence.
[...]
Victims and survivors in Darfur want the international community to support the
ICC investigation. In fact, many refugees have said that justice is not only a
precondition for return but also necessary for the consolidation of the
political process. They believe that accountability is a vital link in building
peace and trust--and deterring future crimes. The people of Darfur are not
willing to sacrifice their legal right to justice to political bartering. [...]
What Darfurians therefore need from the international community is not
compromise on the ICC. [...] Finally, the voices of ordinary Darfurians
demanding justice must be heard. We want to see the international community
supporting the ICC process. Any attempt to sacrifice justice not only validates
the false dichotomy between peace and justice but undermines the potential for a
sustainable end to the crisis."

2. The Nation, Alex de Waal, "The Wars of Sudan," 1 March 2007
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20070319/de_waal

"[...] The impulse among Western activists and policymakers to entertain regime
change, and to pressure and punish those whose misdeeds have inflicted so much
death and destruction, is understandable. But punitive and interventionist
measures carry a high risk of sparking intensified conflict or bringing about
government collapse--either of which would have calamitous humanitarian
consequences. American leadership to avert such disasters is needed now. [...]
Bashir fears that UN troops would have an open-ended mandate to arrest anyone
indicted by the International Criminal Court and that authorizing international
troops to use force on his territory would be a Trojan horse for a takeover à la
the US invasion of Iraq. In naming the first two war crimes suspects on February
27, the ICC was carefully respectful of Sudan's sovereignty, giving Bashir the
opportunity to cooperate in handing over the two men. But he is unlikely to take
this way out--as long as he believes the Western agenda is one of regime change,
no pressure in the world will be sufficient for him to yield. [...]"

3. The American Prospect (web exclusive), "Legal Bind: How the International
Criminal Court can squeeze Khartoum", 28 February 2007,
http://www.prospect.org/web/page.ww?section=root&name=ViewWeb&articleId=12523

"[...] This puts the Bush administration in a difficult spot. It is at once
among the loudest critics of the Sudanese government and one of the strongest
opponents of the International Criminal Court. But now that the prosecutorial
floodgates are open, the Bush administration may find that the ICC can be
useful. [...]
The events on Tuesday were the inevitable consequence of this decision [to refer
Darfur to the ICC]. But today, many in the administration and many outside
observers continue to maintain that the ICC is actually exacerbating the
conflict in Darfur, by complicating ongoing negotiations that could lead to
peacekeepers coming in. [...]
To be sure, Khartoum is likely to react to Tuesday's news with public acts of
defiance. [...] blaming the ICC (or this author's reporting) for Khartoum's
intransigence misses the fundamental reason that Khartoum has yet to accept a
peacekeeping force: The regime has been impervious to international calls to let
peacekeepers into Darfur because no real pressure has yet to be applied that
would force them to do so. [...]
[...] The ICC proceedings provide one further opportunity for the United States
to back its tough talk with action. If the United States acts in partnership
with other like-minded countries and helps enforce the ICC mandate, Khartoum
would be under a level of international pressure that it has not yet
experienced. And, crucially, once indictments and arrest warrants are actually
handed down, they could serve as bargaining chips between the Security Council
and Khartoum. Instead of holding back ICC proceedings as a carrot to entice
Khartoum's cooperation, warrants and indictments could be used to coerce
Khartoum's assent to peacekeepers. [...]
The United States would be wise to use this as an opportunity to pile the
diplomatic pressure high and hard on Khartoum. [...]"

4. Institute for War and Peace Reporting/ International Crisis Group, David
Mozersky, "Accountability in Darfur", 27 February 2007,
http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=4678&l=1

"ICC proceedings against two Darfur suspects signal that the court may be able
to succeed in western Sudan, where there is little international political will
for tough action and the UN Security Council is deadlocked. [...] These
proceedings are hopefully the first step to bringing to justice those most
responsible for the large-scale atrocities that have taken place over the past
four years. [...]
Accountability and compensation are two of the core demands of the more than two
million Darfurians who have been displaced over the course of the conflict.
While compensation was dealt with - albeit insufficiently - in last May's Darfur
Peace Agreement, the negotiations purposefully left the topic of accountability
untouched because the African Union mediators hoped that this would be dealt
with the by the ICC. [...]
Today's ICC proceedings change all these dynamics, at least temporarily. They
demonstrate that the mountains of evidence and documentation of war crimes - by
the ICC, UN, governments and human rights organisations - have finally
translated into something tangible in the international legal system. And they
signal that the ICC may be able to succeed in Darfur, where there is little
international political will for tough action and the UN Security Council is
deadlocked.
Ultimately, success and impact in Darfur will be measured over many years. One
challenge that must be overcome is the ICC's lack of independent enforcement
mechanisms, and its reliance on member states for help. A second challenge is
whether the ICC is able to maintain full independence and continue to go after
those most responsible for crimes in Darfur, or whether it will be pressured to
go after only lower-ranking players so as not to rock the boat, as has occurred
with the UN Security Council Sanctions Committee on Darfur. [...]
The ICC proceedings are one important part of an eventual solution to Darfur
that must include a paradigm shift in the international community's actions in
Darfur, and Sudan more generally. [...]"

5. Foreign Affairs/ International Crisis Group, John Prendergast and Colin
Thomas-Jensen, "Blowing the Horn", 1 March 2007,
http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=4679&l=1

"[...] The United States' counterterrorism objectives would be best served by a
new comprehensive diplomatic initiative focused on resolving conflict and
promoting good governance throughout the region. [...] Washington must do a
better job of garnering international support for using, or at least threatening
to use, multilateral penalties of some type. [...] Real leverage comes from the
early use of multilateral punitive measures -- such as prosecutions by the
International Criminal Court, targeted sanctions against senior officials and
rebels, and oil embargoes and other instruments of economic pressure -- and from
their suspension when compliance is achieved. How can the regime in Khartoum be
expected to act any differently in Darfur if its activities bear no cost? [...]"

6. Mideast Mirror, "Khartoum's Many Mistakes", 1 March 2007 (quoting commentator
Mahmoud Rimawi in Jordanian al-Ra'i), (link not available)

"There are those in the West who have already pronounced Khartoum guilty as
charged, but there is no doubt that the Sudanese government has committed many
mistakes, says Mahmoud Rimawi in Jordanian al-Ra'i. [...] "The indictment by the
International Criminal Court (ICC) of former Sudanese officials for crimes
against humanity was a significant development," writes Jordanian commentator
Mahmoud Rimawi in the Amman daily al-Ra'i. [...] Khartoum could have avoided all
the hassle had it paid more attention to the tragedy by trying to save innocent
civilians from being targeted by the rebels. [...]"

7. SUNA, Al Naseri , "ICC accusations tend to undermine peace process and
efforts made to solve Darfur conflict", 2 March 2007, (link not available)

"Yemeni political writer Hassan Al-Naseri has expressed astonishment and
indignation over the accusations raised by the International Criminal Court
(ICC) Persecutor [sic] against Sudan, saying that the accusations were raised in
a studied timing with the aim to undermine the calls directed by Khartoum to the
movements that did not sign Abuja agreement to join the peace march, and the
efforts being made to solve Darfur conflict. Interviewed by SUNA correspondent
Faisal Al-Shabibi, he indicated that these accusations are not but a ring in
along series of lies that try to instigate the Western public opinion to break
the unity of the effective Arab and Islamic states one after the other [...]"

8. Katy Glassborow, Institute For War and Peace Reporting, "ICC Prosecutor Names
Darfur Suspects", 27 February 2007,
http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=333598&apc_state=henptrino item found.</p
>333598

"[...] This is a significant move for ICC prosecutors, who have been criticised
by human rights groups for not so far issuing charges of sexual violence against
anyone involved in the conflict in the Ituri region of the Democratic Republic
of the Congo. [...]
However, the Sudanese authorities also severely downplay the scale of violence
and number of deaths in Darfur, and many human right organisations feel that the
SCCED is a sham and not intent on holding anyone accountable for grave crimes
against humanity.
Now it is up to the pre-trial judges to review the prosecution evidence and
determine whether there are reasonable grounds to believe that Harun and Kushayb
are culpable, and how best to ensure their appearance in The Hague. No one knows
how long this might take. [...]"

9. Los Angeles Times, "You Know Genocide When You See It", David Kaye, 1 March
2007,
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-kaye1mar01,0,7254997.story?coll=la-opi
nion-rightrail

"Does the international law against genocide have force today? Or is it that
genocide, a powerful political and rhetorical tool, is nearly impossible to
prove in court? Those weighty questions are hanging over The Hague after two
legal actions this week. In one, the International Court of Justice found
insufficient evidence to hold Serbia responsible for genocide in
Bosnia-Herzegovina in the early 1990s. In another, the International Criminal
Court refrained from characterizing the atrocities committed in Sudan's Darfur
region as genocide. [...]
Instead, Moreno-Ocampo alleges that a Sudanese government official and a
janjaweed militia commander bear responsibility for war crimes and crimes
against humanity, including brutal attacks against civilians in Darfur. He has
made a smart choice; better to prosecute these perpetrators on provable grounds
than try to make a symbolic statement about genocide and risk losing the case.
Taking these developments together, one has to wonder whether genocide can be
proved in a court of law. [...]"

10. New York Times, "Taking Genocide to Court" (editorial), 5 March 2007,
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/05/opinion/05mon1.html?ex=1173762000&en=592560b8d
3fd3f18&ei=5070&emc=eta1

"[...] The Darfur cases are being pursued in the International Criminal Court,
which prosecutes individuals for grave violations of international law. [...]
Court rulings can never compensate the survivors of these horrors. But by
strengthening the reach and authority of international law, these cases should
give pause to those tempted to unleash future genocides - and to those who stand
by."

11. The Star Phoenix, "World ignoring dire need to act in Darfur, Chad"
(editorial), 6 March 2007,
http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/forum/story.html?id=c569932a-d6b
1-4c14-8c71-0ceaee8d5ab3

"Considering the scale of the crimes under consideration, the decisions that
emanated from the World Court and the International Criminal Court last week
seem wholly inadequate. [...] While the world community eventually took steps to
end the genocide in the Balkans, it has no will to act to save lives in Darfur.
[...] Although the world placed a lot of hope on the power of courts to end such
bloodletting, the two decisions last week demonstrate there can be no justice
without a willingness to back it with force. [...]"

12. New Vision (Uganda), "Arrest Sitting Presidents" (editorial), 2 March 2007,
http://allafrica.com/stories/200703030085.html
"[...] It is heartening that the ICC prosecutor has named his first suspects and
that one of them is serving in government. Previously, suspects have been
apprehended when they are no longer in power. [...] Therefore, the ICC should
name more suspects in Darfur and elsewhere, if there are any, even if they are
higher than ministers. This would be a warning to other leaders and would
prevent further bloodshed in the world. [...] The international community could
legitimately seize a sitting leader, with the UN mandate, if only to stop
atrocities and save lives. The US did it on General Noriega of Panama, for
different charges and it can be done for the ICC."

13. Newark Star-Ledger, "Accountability for Genocide" (editorial), 2 March 2007,
http://www.nj.com/starledger/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1172816863216280.xml
&coll=1

"[...] The question of how directly a government is responsible for atrocities
is also at issue in Darfur, where the Sudanese government has armed the
janjaweed militias that have displaced millions of people and killed hundreds of
thousands more. The International Criminal Court was asked to issue summonses
for two men [...] This is a start, but only that, in bringing justice to the
people of Darfur. There are a number of hurdles before any trial begins. [...]
Some critics argue ICC trials might mean continued or even greater threat for
Darfurians, who could suffer from Khartoum's retributive rage. [...] But while
this is a legitimate concern, so is the galling impunity of human rights
violators. If the ICC can use Darfur as a model for creating accountability, it
will strengthen the power of international law to deal with these issues in the
future. And if the U.N. acknowledges the ICC's limits to charge states with such
crimes, perhaps it will put more effort into enforcing the "responsibility to
protect" - the right of humanitarian intervention. [...]"

****************************************************
II. MULTIMEDIA BROADCASTS

1. Arab Republic of Egypt Radio, radio commentary by Adila Abd-al-Nasir, "Darfur
and the need for an intensive political effort to end the crisis", 1 March 2007,
transcript supplied by BBC Worldwide Monitoring (link not available)

"A commentary on Egyptian radio commentary by Adila Abd-al-Nasir, entitled
"Darfur and the need for an intensive political effort to end the crisis" says
"once again the situation in the Darfur area, in western Sudan, has been brought
back under international spotlight and attention, after the International
Criminal Court announced a list of the names of some of the people accused of
committing war crimes in Darfur". The commentary adds that the Sudanese
government was clear "in pointing out that the Sudanese judiciary enjoys
independence and impartiality and that it is capable of trying anyone
responsible for committing crimes in the Darfur territory", in a reference to
Sudan's rejection of the International Criminal Court's jurisdiction over
Darfur. [...]"

2. The World Today Show, Reporter Rafael Epstein & Guest Leslie Lefkow, "Expert
Says Court Action Could Calm Darfur", 28 February 2007, transcript supplied by
ABC Transcripts (Australia),
http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2007/s1859604.htm

"ELEANOR HALL: The naming of a Sudanese minister and a militia leader by the
International Criminal Court in the Hague could be a turning point for the
stricken region of Darfur. The court now has to decide if the case should go
ahead, and whether to issue arrest warrants for Ahmed Haroun, who used to be the
minister responsible for Darfur, and the militia leader, Ali Kusheyb. [...]
Leslie Lefkow has written several reports on Darfur for the group Human Rights
Watch, and she spoke to correspondent Rafael Epstein from Nairobi.

LESLIE LEFKOW: There are more than two million people in Darfur who I think will
look upon this as a very important message that impunity is going to end. [...]
We really need to see the International Criminal Court continue its
investigation and continue to target the senior leadership of the Sudanese
Government, who are responsible for the policies in Darfur. [...] The prosecutor
has now, you know, publicly named these two people. The key question is will
they actually end up in The Hague. And I think this is going to be very
difficult and it's going to require an enormous amount of support and pressure
from the international community.
At the end of the day, members of the UN Security Council, for example, are
going to have to strongly back the ICC. [...] Now, if arrest warrants are
issued, that will place an obligation on all states, not just the Sudanese
Government, to actually implement those warrants. And I think that would be
very, very important, because if the Sudanese Government does not cooperate
then, you know, other governments are going to have to push that these people,
not only put pressure on Khartoum to cooperate, but also take the step of
arresting some of these people if they leave Sudan.

RAFAEL EPSTEIN: Do you think people in Darfur will see justice while countries
like Russia and China are very interested in resources in Sudan?

LESLIE LEFKOW: I think that the people of Darfur have a very strong desire for
justice, and I think that seeing an end to the impunity that has happened, that
has taken place in Darfur, is key to ending the violence there. And one would
hope that the Chinese and Russian and other governments who have provided some
support, be it diplomatic or otherwise, to the Sudanese Government, will stop
putting the perpetrators of abuses before the victims and really start to put
some pressure. [...]"

3. ABC Transcripts (Australia), Reporter Andrew Geoghegan, "Court Names Darfur
War Crime Suspects", 28 February 2007, (link not available)

"TONY EASTLEY: In the Darfur region of Sudan people get away with murder, and
torture, and rape, and a host of other crimes as well. [...] But overnight the
International Criminal Court in The Hague named the first suspects it wants to
prosecute. This report from our Africa Correspondent, Andrew Geoghegan.

ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: It's a conflict that has black African rebels fighting Arab
militia. But it's the innocent of Darfur who've been dying by the thousands. The
International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, says that
civilians have been deliberately targeted by the militia because they support
the rebel forces.

LUIS MORENO-OCAMPO: This strategy became the justification for the mass murder,
summary execution and mass rape of civilians who were known not to be
participant in any armoured conflict.

ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: The result has been death and misery on such a large scale
that it's been compared with the Rwandan genocide of the mid 90s. [...] Finally,
someone is being held accountable. [...]

LUIS MORENO-OCAMPO: Our evidence show that they commit crimes against humanity
and war crimes, including rape and other forms of sexual violence, murder,
persecution, torture, forcible transfer, destruction of property, pillaging,
inhumane acts and severe deprivation of liberty.

ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: [...] Sudan's Justice Minister, Mohammed Ali al-Mardi, has
rejected the charges and says his government will not hand over the suspects.

MOHAMMED ALI AL-MARDI: The International Criminal Court has no jurisdiction to
try any offender in the Sudan, because the Sudanese Government has not ratified
the Rome Statute, which governs the proceedings of this international court.

ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: But Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo alleges that Ahmed
Haroun, who was interior minister in charge of Darfur at the height of the
conflict, helped recruit militias. [...]"

4. National Public Radio (NPR), All Things Considered Show, International
Prosecutor Names Names in Darfur Crisis, 27 February 2007, (link not available)

"MICHELE NORRIS, host: [...] Human rights groups say they hope the era of
impunity is over for crimes committed in Darfur, Sudan. Today, the lead
prosecutor of the International Criminal Court presented evidence against a
Sudanese government official and a militia leader, and accused them of working
together to attack civilians in Darfur. Sudan immediately rejected the
allegations and vowed not to hand over the two men. NPR's Michele Kelemen
reports.

MICHELE KELEMEN: Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo says he's trying to show how the
system worked in Darfur. [...] Sudan's justice minister said the International
Criminal Court has no jurisdiction in his country, and made clear Sudan won't
hand over the two men. Haroun is still in government, a minister of state for
humanitarian affairs. And Ali Kushayb has been in custody since November facing
trial at home. Richard Dicker of Human Rights Watch says Sudan hasn't tried
anyone for serious crimes in Darfur, and that's one reason the ICC is stepping
in.

Mr. RICHARD DICKER (Director, Human Rights Watch): There've been a few cases for
theft of sheep and other minor property crimes. I'm hard-pressed to believe that
the Sudanese authorities - with the spectacular failure to date to bring anybody
to justice - is going to change overnight.

KELEMEN: Dicker says it won't be an easy task to bring these two people to
justice. Still, he's encouraging the prosecutor to go further. [...]

Mr. ANDREW CAYLEY (Lead Attorney, Darfur Case, International Criminal Court):
We've also been operating in Chad, within the refugee community. That's been
extremely difficult because we have to be very discreet. Other international
organizations are working there. Obviously, one has to be discreet because of
the difficulties that they operating there.

KELEMEN: The International Criminal Court is also looking into crimes in Chad
and the Central African Republic, as the conflict in Western Sudan spills across
borders."

5. ABC News Now, Guilt or Innocence Show, Reporter Rob Simmelkjaer, 27 February
2007, (link not available)

[...] ROB SIMMELKJAER (ABC NEWS) (Voiceover) The International Criminal Court
located in the Hague named former Sudanese government minister, Ahmed Haroun as
one of the suspects establishing in direct link between the Sudanese government
and the Janjaweed militias responsible for so much of the violence. Sudan
rejected the allegations and refused to hand the man over for a trial. [...]

6. Sudanese TV, "Sudan dismisses Darfur crimes evidence as 'lies', 'conspiracy',
27 February, 2007, supplied by the BBC Worldwide Monitoring, (link not
available)

The justice minister, Maulana [honorific] Muhammad Ali al-Maradhi, has said the
judiciary in Sudan is competent to prosecute anyone who is proved to have
committed crimes in Darfur. He said the International Criminal Court [ICT] had
no mandate to prosecute any Sudanese outside the country.

[Reporter] The minister of justice, Maulana Muhammad Ali al-Maradhi, said the
ICT had no mandate to try any Sudanese national outside the country. [...]

[Al-Maradhi] We have a firm and principled position which we have expressed in
the past. This remains our position. The ICT has no mandate to try any Sudanese
for any alleged crime. This matter is covered by provisions in international
law, which state that every government is responsible for implementing the law
within its border, especially if it is a sovereign country, and that criminals
are to be prosecuted in accordance with national laws. [...] As far as Sudan is
concerned, our judiciary is independent and its fairness and experience can be
witnessed. Our judges are competent and we adhere to the principle of the
independence of the judiciary and the independence of judges as well. This is a
judiciary that has prosecuted many [criminal] cases that have been committed in
Darfur.

[Reporter] The justice minister dismissed the allegations and lies of the ICT
prosecutor. He said the evidence on which the prosecutor-general based his
verdict were false and lacked objectivity.

[Al-Maradhi] All the evidence which the prosecutor referred to are lies given to
him by people carrying arms against the government, against the citizens and are
killing innocent people in Darfur.
[Reporter] The justice minister described the tribunal's announcement as part of
the international conspiracy against Sudan regarding the issue of international
troops."

7. National Public Radio, Show "News and Notes 9:00 AM", Tony Cox, "Darfur,
Senegal Elections", 2 March 2007, (link not available)

"The Hague hands down charges on possible crimes in Darfur. [...] Joining me now
is NPR special Africa correspondent Charlayne Hunter-Gault.

COX: Let's start with Sudan, Charlayne. First, war crimes charges have been
handed down this week by the International Criminal Court in the Hague. What are
the details surrounding that?

HUNTER-GAULT: Well, first of all, this is not indictments, but these are the
first accusations against individuals in the four-year-old Darfur conflict. The
prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, investigated for 21 months and handed down 94
pages, finding reasonable grounds to believe in the culpability of two Sudanese
on 51 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. [...]
COX: What's been the Bashir government reaction?

HUNTER-GAULT: Well, they have rejected these war crimes allegations. They say
the two will not be handed over. [...] Now, of course, human rights groups have
applauded this and have said that what they need to do now is move more quickly
up the senior chain of command and name more people as bearing criminal
responsibility in Darfur.

COX: So what's likely to happen then?

HUNTER-GAULT: Well, I don't know. I mean unless the U.N. is prepared to send a
force to go after those people in Sudan, which is not likely, probably not a lot
is not going to happen. I mean, they could issue international warrants for
their arrest and they can move towards an indictment. But as far as bringing
them to trial, it doesn't look likely that these two are going to be handed
over, certainly not by the Sudanese government. [...]"

8. Al Jazeera satellite TV, 3 March 2007, "Al-Jazeera TV talk show discusses
Darfur", supplied by BBC Worldwide Monitoring

[...] Layla al-Shaykhali in the Doha studios hosts Fathi Khalil, president of
the Sudanese Bar Association, via satellite from Khartoum; and Hasan Sati,
Sudanese writer and researcher, via satellite from London. The anchorwoman
begins by asking Fathi Khalil if Al-Bashir's government has any "manoeuvring
margin" now that someone in the government has testified against it. [...] He
adds that "currently there is absolutely no talk about UN forces, and even the
US envoy, who came to Sudan, did not talk about UN troops or about the
International Criminal Court but about accelerating the peace process in the
South and in Darfur." [...] I was with the International Criminal Court
prosecutor two hours ago. He told me: 'Kofi Annan gave me a list of 51. I looked
at it and then kept it in my drawer and began fresh investigations, which
resulted in naming Ali Kushayb and Ahmad Harun.' [...] Darfur will head towards
internationalization unless Khartoum makes the best use of time and opens its
eyes well to reach a new solution that brings back to Darfur all its people and
all movements on the basis of a comprehensive settlement."
Asked if such a solution can be reached and if a government decision expressing
the opinion of all government partners can be made, Khalil says: "[...] I can
also tell you that even with regard to the issue of the International Criminal
Court, there is dialogue and convergence in the positions of the SPLM and the
NCP on the need to hold the trials in Sudan. Intensive meetings and dialogues
are taking place. I believe that the two partners are now getting closer rather
than far apart. [...]"

****************************************************
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ICC:

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