Sudan’s Bashir to attend regional summit in Mauritania in July
May 30, 2016 (KHARTOUM) – Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir would head his country’s delegation participating in the upcoming Arab League (AL) summit which will be held in the capital of Mauritania, Nouakchott in July, said Sudan’s state foreign minister
The Sudanese president visited Mauritania two times since the ICC issued the arrest warrants.
Mauritania is not a state party to the Rome Statute of the ICC, and therefore has no obligations under the statute. However, the ICC chief prosecutor, Fatu Bensouda, had in the past asked Saudi Arabia and Egypt who are also non signatories to the statute to arrest Bashir.
Sudan’s State Foreign Minister Obied Allah Mohamed stressed the need to discuss ways for implementing the Arab food security initiative launched by President Bashir during the meetings of the 3rd Arab Economic and Social Development Summit in Riyadh in 2013.
He praised the support rendered by the AL to Sudan particularly with regard to peace and development issues, stressing Sudan’s support for the Palestinian cause as the central and pivotal issue for the Arab and Islamic nation.
Obied Allah, who participated in the AL foreign ministers emergency meeting in Cairo on Saturday, expressed hope that the French initiative for Israeli-Palestinian peace could achieve the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people to the establish their independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.
Commenting on the situation in Libya, the Sudanese minister pointed to his country’s efforts within the mechanism of the neighbouring countries of Libya to settle the differences among warring factions, stressing Sudan’s support to the internationally recognized government headed by Faiz Al-Siraj.
Obied Allah further welcomed the AL resolutions supporting peace and development in Sudan, demanding the regional body to support the exit strategy of the peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) following stability and improved security situation in the region.
He also urged the AL to support Sudan’s demands for lifting the unilateral coercive economic sanctions imposed on it by the United States besides removing its name from the U.S. list of countries sponsoring terrorism.
Washington imposed economic and trade sanctions on Sudan in 1997 in response to its alleged connection to terror networks and human rights abuses. In 2007 it strengthened the embargo, citing abuses in Darfur which it labelled as genocide.
Also, Sudan has been on the US list of countries supporting terrorism since 1993, for allegedly providing support and safe haven for terrorist groups.
The Sudanese minister praised the support rendered to Sudan by Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Egypt and Qatar, expecting the AL summit to urge the UN Security Council to consider the adverse impact of the U.S sanctions on human rights in Sudan.
(ST)