US congressional delegation visits Sudan’s Darfur region
Feb 19, 2006 (KHARTOUM) — A U.S. congressional delegation visited Sudan’s troubled Darfur region on Saturday to assess the security and humanitarian situation, the Foreign Ministry said.
The 11-person delegation, led by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, was to meet with officials in Darfur and visit troubled areas, ministry spokesman Jamal Mohamed said.
“The delegation seeks to get firsthand information about the humanitarian situation in Darfur,” Mohamed said. “This would be a good opportunity for the delegation to know the situation on the ground instead of depending on negative reports being propagated by some quarters amid congressmen.”
He did not elaborate.
According to a statement released before the trip, the U.S. delegation also plans to visit Sudan , Cape Verde, Ghana, Liberia and South Africa.
“Our delegation will assess the situation on the ground in Darfur and discuss security, economic, health, and hunger issues with regional leaders across the continent,” Pelosi said in the statement.
Meanwhile, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir renewed his country’s rejection of trial outside the country for any Sudanese national suspected of human rights violations. He reiterated that the Sudanese justice system was capable of handling such cases and achieving justice, according to the official Sudan Media Center.
Al-Bashir made the comments during a meeting with senior judges, in which he told them he would make sure that no outside body would influence or exercise pressure on judges in Sudan.
The SMC quoted the president as calling for “open, fair, and prompt trial for those accused (of human rights violations) in Darfur events.”
(AP/ST)