Court issues new Bashir warrant

PHOTO/FILE

Sudan President Omar al-Bashir addressing a conference in Khartoum last year. The High Court has issued a fresh provisional warrant of arrest against him.

The High Court has issued a fresh provisional warrant of arrest against Sudan President Omar al-Bashir with strict consequences to Internal Security minister George Saitoti if the government fails to obey the order.

Mr Justice Nicholas Ombija directed that President Al-Bashir should be apprehended if he sets foot in Kenya and handed over to the International Criminal Court to face charges of crimes against humanity.

“The High Court hereby issues this provisional warrant of arrest against Omar al-Bashir and commands you Prof George Saitoti to apprehend him should he come to Kenya and surrender him to the ICC in accordance with the request to all party states to the Rome Statute,” ruled Mr Justice Ombija.

The directive is likely to further jeopardise diplomatic relations between Kenya and Sudan given the tension it created when the warrant of arrest was issued on November 28, last year.

The judge said that he was satisfied with the information provided by the International Commission of Jurists-Kenya Chapter to issue the provisional warrant of arrest urgently as provided under Section 32 of the International Crimes Act.

He said that the court issued the warrant of arrest to conform with the ICC request to ensure that Al-Bashir appeared before the court.

“It is also necessary to ensure he will not obstruct or endanger the ongoing investigations into the crimes for which he is allegedly responsible and that he will not continue with the commission of the crimes,” the judge said.

He first issued the arrest warrant against the Sudan leader last November, following an application by the ICJ after the government failed to arrest him when he visited the country during the promulgation of the Constitution in August 2010.