Watchdog blasts Sudan trials
2008-10-22 10:00
Khartoum - A leading rights watchdog says Sudan's efforts to try a Darfur militia commander wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Darfur are "window dressing" that cannot bring justice to the victims in the war-torn region.
The New York-based Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday that Sudanese judiciary is not equipped to hold war crimes trials. The group says such a move by Khartoum aims to block international investigation into Darfur.
The ICC chief prosecutor has accused Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir of orchestrating genocide in Darfur but Sudanese officials have lobbied the international community to block his possible prosecution.
Khartoum even announced in October it would hold a domestic trial for Arab militia commander, Ali Kusheyab, wanted by the ICC in a separate case for war crimes.
- AP