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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Warrant issued for Sudan's Bashir | Warrant issued for Sudan's Bashir |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Sudan's president on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. | The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Sudan's president on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. |
| However, the court stopped short of accusing Omar al-Bashir, who denies the charges, of committing genocide. | However, the court stopped short of accusing Omar al-Bashir, who denies the charges, of committing genocide. |
| Reports say Sudan's capital, Khartoum, was tense as people awaited the decision, with fears of unrest. | Reports say Sudan's capital, Khartoum, was tense as people awaited the decision, with fears of unrest. |
| The UN estimates some 300,000 people have died and millions been displaced in six years of conflict in the region. | The UN estimates some 300,000 people have died and millions been displaced in six years of conflict in the region. |
| The spokeswoman for the court in The Hague, Laurence Blairon, said Mr Bashir was suspected of being criminally responsible for "intentionally directing attacks against an important part of the civilian population of Darfur, Sudan, murdering, exterminating, raping, torturing and forcibly transferring large numbers of civilians and pillaging their property". | |
| She said the violence in Darfur was the result of a common plan organised at the highest level of the Sudanese government, but there was no evidence of genocide. | She said the violence in Darfur was the result of a common plan organised at the highest level of the Sudanese government, but there was no evidence of genocide. |
| The court would transmit as soon as possible to the government of Sudan a request for his arrest and surrender, she added. | The court would transmit as soon as possible to the government of Sudan a request for his arrest and surrender, she added. |
| It is the ICC's first ever warrant issued against a sitting head of state. | It is the ICC's first ever warrant issued against a sitting head of state. |
| ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo had requested that the court issue a warrant for Mr Bashir's arrest in July 2008. | ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo had requested that the court issue a warrant for Mr Bashir's arrest in July 2008. |
| However, Sudan expert Alex de Waal told the BBC the indictment is "pretty toothless" as the ICC does not have a police force and the warrant will be delivered to Sudan's government, which is unlikely to execute it. | |
| Reacting to the news, a Sudanese presidential adviser dismissed the charges, telling state television that it was part of a "neo-colonialism" plan, Reuters news agency reported. |