ICC prosecutor: Darfur victims want to see al-Bashir in court

International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said Wednesday that victims of war crimes and genocide in the Darfur region want former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir brought to the court.

Bensouda has been visiting Sudan's western Darfur region to meet with authorities and affected communities in the region. She said she was inspired by "the resilience and courage" of the Darfur people.

Al-Bashir, who has been in jail in Khartoum since his ouster in April 2019, is facing several trials in Sudanese courts related to his three decades of authoritarian rule.

The conflict in Sudan's Darfur region broke out when rebels from the territory's ethnic central and sub-Saharan African community launched an insurgency in 2003, complaining of oppression by the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum.

Al-Bashir's government responded with a campaign of aerial bombings and raids by militias known as Janjaweed, who stand accused of mass killings and rapes. Up to 300,000 people were killed and 2.7 million were driven from their homes.

The ICC charged al-Bashir with war crimes and genocide for allegedly masterminding the campaign of attacks in Darfur. Sudanese prosecutors started last year their own investigation into the Darfur conflict.

Also indicted by the court are two other senior figures from al-Bashir's rule: Abdel-Rahim Muhammad Hussein, interior and defence minister during much of the conflict, and Ahmed Haroun, a senior security chief at the time and later the leader of al-Bashir's ruling party.

Both Hussein and Haroun have been under arrest in Khartoum since the Sudanese military, under pressure from protesters, ousted al-Bashir in April 2019.

The court also indicted rebel leader Abdulla Banda, whose whereabouts are unknown, and Janjaweed leader Ali Kushayb, who was charged last week with crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Sudan's transitional government has previously said that war crime suspects including al-Bashir would be tried before the ICC, but the trial venue is a matter for negotiations with The Hague-based court.