UNITED NATIONS (AFP) – International Criminal Court (ICC) judges have decided to issue an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir over alleged genocide in Darfur, The New York Times reported Wednesday.
The daily, quoting court lawyers and diplomats, reported on its website that the move by a panel of judges in The Hague marked the first time that the world's first independent, permanent tribunal on war crimes has sought the detention of a sitting head of state since it began its work in 2002.
It said precise charges cited by the judges against Beshir had not been not disclosed.
Last year, ICC's chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo asked the court for an arrest warrant for Beshir on 10 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.
The New York Times quoted UN officials as saying the decision on the warrant was communicated to UN chief Ban Ki-moon and was expected to be formally announced at the court in the coming days.
But asked to comment on the report, UN deputy spokeswoman Marie Okabe said: "I can confirm that no decision has been received by the Secretary General. We do not anticipate receiving such communication and we do not normally receive such communication."
And Japan's UN Ambassador Yukio Takasu, the president of the Security Council this month, said: "The council has not been informed yet."
"We have not been told about this but it would not be a surprise to us. It does not concern us," said Sudan's UN Ambassador Abdalmahmood Abdalhaleem Mohamad.
Tuesday, Ban urged Khartoum to act "very responsibly" if an arrest warrant is issued for Beshir.
The UN chief told a press conference that whatever decision the ICC reaches, "it will be very important for President Beshir and the Sudanese government to react very responsibly and ensure the safety and security" of UN peacekeepers (in Darfur) and protect the human rights of the population."
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