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Darfur: Upcoming briefing at the UNSC on the progress of investigations; Prosecutor will present his second case on Darfur, according to media reports

03 June 2008

Dear friends,

Find below information related to the International Criminal Court's
investigation in Darfur, in advance to the ICC Prosecutor's
presentation before the Security Council of the United Nations on June
5, 2008.

On 31 March 2005, the United Nations Security Council voted to refer
the situation in Darfur, Sudan to the International Criminal Court
(ICC): this marks the first- and so far, the only- time the Security
Council has referred a case to the ICC.

On 6 June 2005, Prosecutor Mr. Luis Moreno-Ocampo officially opened an
investigation into crimes committed in Darfur. Under Council
Resolution 1593 (2005), the ICC Prosecutor is invited to address the
Council every six months on the progress of his investigation in
Darfur. In his last briefing, the Prosecutor reported on the
government of Sudan's refusal to cooperate with the Court. He
emphasized the need for Security Council action in response and also
called on UN member states, including Sudan, to cooperate with the
Court. The ICC prosecutor also announced the opening of two new Darfur
cases: the first will investigate ongoing attacks against civilians,
particularly in camps for the displaced, and the second will focus on
recent attacks against humanitarian personnel.

According to the ICC Media Advisory issued on June 2, 2008 in this
upcoming briefing, the Prosecutor will not only update the Security
Council on the progress of his investigations in Darfur, but will also
explore with the Council possible reactions to the Sudan's non
cooperation with the Court, and non compliance with UN Security
Council Resolution 1593.

Visit our website for further information on the ICC investigation in
Darfur http://www.coalitionfortheicc.org/?mod=darfur.

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 and current situations before the Court or
situations under analysis. The Coalition, however, will continue to
provide the most up-to-date information about the ICC.

With regards,

Mariana Rodriguez-Pareja
CICC Communications
www.coalitionfortheicc.org

***
A. ICC MEDIA ADVISORY

Media Advisory: ICC Prosecutor on Darfur: "Stop the crimes, Stop the
Criminals", International Criminal Court, 2 June 2008
Available in English, French and Arabic
http://www.icc-cpi.int/press/pressreleases/373.html

"On June 5, International Criminal Court Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo
will be in New York to deliver his report to the United Nations
Security Council on the situation in Darfur. The Prosecutor will
update the Council on the progress of his second and third cases in
Darfur, and explore with the Council possible reactions to the Sudan's
non cooperation with the Court, and non compliance with UN Security
Council Resolution 1593.

The Government of Sudan has taken no steps to arrest Ahmad Harun,
former Minister of State for Interior of the Sudan, and Ali Kushayb, a
Militia Janjaweed leader, both indicted by the ICC on 27 April 2007
for crimes against humanity and war crimes.

'The people of Darfur are attacked in their villages and in the camps.
They are attacked now. Community leaders are arrested, women are
raped, schools are bombed. Those are not military actions. Those are
criminal acts." said Prosecutor Moreno Ocampo.

Today, Ahmed Harun is still a Minister of the Government of the Sudan,
in charge of humanitarian affairs. Impunity for Harun has concrete
consequences on the international community's efforts to deliver
humanitarian assistance and promote security in Darfur. He attacks the
people he has the responsibility to protect. He hampers the delivery
of relief to the victims. He is also involved in obstructing
deployment of the peacekeepers. Impunity, for the Darfuris, is not an
abstraction. It means death and destruction.

The Security Council referred the situation in Darfur to the
Prosecutor in March 2005, recognizing that justice must be a component
of any solution for Darfur. The UN Security Council is in Khartoum
this week on the 4th of June. 'This is a fantastic opportunity to
ensure a clear, strong and unified message to the Sudanese authorities
that the crimes must be stopped and Ahmed Harun arrested' Prosecutor
Moreno-Ocampo said.

'Darfur is a test for the international community. We cannot look
away. Council members can explain in Khartoum that those who protect
alleged criminals and commit crimes will not escape the law' added the
Prosecutor.

The International Criminal Court is an independent, permanent court
that investigates and prosecutes persons accused of the most serious
crimes of international concern, namely genocide, crimes against
humanity and war crimes if national authorities with jurisdiction are
unwilling or unable to do so genuinely. The Office of the Prosecutor
is currently investigating in four situations: The Democratic
Republic of Congo, Northern Uganda, the Darfur region of Sudan, and
the Central African Republic, all still engulfed in various degrees of
conflict with victims in urgent need of protection. ..."


B. MEDIA REPORTS

i. "ICC prosecutor to unveil new case next week against Sudan," AFP,
30 May 2008
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5i2F0KNGX1HhsL85lxMmzQHfFm26w

"Urging decisive action against Sudanese war crimes suspects, the
International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor said Friday he would
announce details of a new case next week against senior players in the
Darfur conflict.

'I will inform the ... (United Nations) Security Council on June 5
when I will present my second case on Darfur,' prosecutor Luis
Moreno-Ocampo told reporters in The Hague, the tribunal's permanent
seat. He is due to brief the Security Council in New York on the
situation in Sudan's eastern Darfur region next Thursday, the same
week that a council delegation is due to visit Khartoum.

The new case would start 'in the near future', said Moreno-Ocampo,
declining to reveal how many people would be targeted, or whom. He did
say they would be 'at a higher level' than Sudanese secretary of state
for humanitarian affairs Ahmed Haroun, who has yet to be detained
despite the ICC issuing a warrant for his arrest a year ago.

'Haroun is still in the middle of this operation ... It is obvious
that he is not arrested, he is a minister, so he is not alone,'
Moreno-Ocampo said, adding he was collecting evidence 'to prove
criminal responsibility at a higher level than Haroun......."

ii. "Prosecutor urges Security Council to press Sudan to arrest
minister wanted for Darfur crimes," AP, 30 May 2008
http://www.pr-inside.com/prosecutor-urges-security-council-to-r616940.htm

"The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Friday
that U.N. Security Council members scheduled to visit Sudan next week
should push for the arrest of a government minister wanted for alleged
war crimes in Darfur.

Luis Moreno-Ocampo said Sudanese Humanitarian Affairs Minister Ahmed
Muhammed Harun, charged with war crimes committed four years ago, is
still responsible for crimes today against refugees forced to flee
their homes in Darfur.

He also accused Harun of stalling deployment of a joint U.N.-African
Union peacekeeping force known as UNAMID to the war-ravaged Sudanese
region.
'The lack of arrest of Harun is affecting the ... deployment and, even
if they are deployed, will affect their security,' Moreno-Ocampo told
a small group of foreign correspondents in The Hague...."

iii. "ICC targets top Sudan ministers," The Gulf news, 31 May 2008
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=221598&version=1&template_id=37&parent_id=17

"The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said yesterday he
will open a case against senior members of Sudan's government as
Khartoum has failed to arrest a minister he indicted over crimes in
Darfur...."

See also:

a- "ICC to Reveal New Case Against Sudanese Officials," Voice of
America, 30 May 2008
http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-05-30-voa46.cfm

b- "ICC to announce a new list of Darfur war crimes suspects,"Sudan
Tribune, 31 May 2008
http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article27360

iv. "Global court sets sights on top Sudanese officials," Reuters, 31 May 2008
http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnBAN055811.html

"The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said on Friday he
will open a case against senior members of Sudan's government as
Khartoum has failed to arrest a minister he indicted over crimes in
Darfur.

.... Luis Moreno Ocampo said he would brief the U.N. Security Council
on June 5 about a new Darfur case he planned to bring 'in the near
future' and called on its members to push Sudan to cooperate during a
visit by the Council to Khartoum next week.

'Justice in Darfur is a key element for lasting peace,' he told
foreign journalists in The Hague. 'It's time to put their (Security
Council) message into reality.'

He said he would give the Security Council a date when he planned to
issue indictments against the senior ministers, who have yet to be
named....."

*************************************
CICC's policy on the referral and prosecution of situations before the ICC:

The Coalition for the ICC is not an organ of the court. The CICC is an
independent NGO movement dedicated to the establishment of the
International Criminal Court as a fair, effective, and independent
international organization.

The Coalition will continue to provide the most up-to-date information
about the ICC and to help coordinate global action to effectively
implement the Rome Statute of the ICC. The Coalition will also endeavor to
respond to basic queries and to raise awareness about the ICC's trigger
mechanisms and procedures, as they develop. The Coalition as a
whole, and its secretariat, do not endorse or promote specific
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and other support on investigations, or develop partnerships with local
and other organizations in the course of their efforts.

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2500 CM the Hague
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