News Article by MEO posted on August 18, 2008 at 15:54:02: EST (-5 GMT)
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President Beshir in Turkey for Africa summit ANKARA (Middle East Online) - Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir arrived in Istanbul Monday for a summit of African and Turkish leaders, his first trip abroad since the International Criminal Court prosecutor called for his arrest over war crimes in Darfur. Beshir will be heading the Sudanese delegation at the Turkish-Africa Cooperation Summit on Tuesday and Wednesday, and is also expected to meet his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul on the sidelines of the meeting, Akuei Malwal, an official on the Sudanese delegation, told Turkey's NTV news channel. Beshir last month became the first head of state ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in the Sudan's Darfur region. Sudan flatly refuses any recognition of or dealings with the ICC. Instead Khartoum has embarked on a diplomatic campaign to freeze any proceedings against Beshir and insists on the effectiveness of its own courts. US-based Human Rights Watch said it had sent a letter to Turkey voicing its concern that it had chosen to welcome Beshir at this time and urged Ankara to reject any effort to suspend the investigation. "The Sudanese government remains responsible for massive atrocities in Darfur," charged Georgette Gagnon, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "To suspend the ICC investigation in response to Khartoum's outrageous threats and empty promises would be to betray the victims in Darfur," she said in a statement. "There has been no improvement in the situation on the ground in Darfur, nor in the behaviour of the Sudanese government, that would in any way justify such a suspension at this time," the group said. This is not the first time that Ankara has come under fire for close contacts with the Sudanese leader. Gul already hosted Beshir in January drawing flak from human rights activists. |