The Sudan president, Mr. Omar al-Bashir, the Islamist militia, black Darfurians and the rest of Africa eagerly await the decision of the International Criminal Court on the impending arrest and trial of president Omar al-Bashir.
President Bashir who as an army man served with the Egyptian army during the 1973 Arab-Israeli war has recently received support from Egypt and the rest of the Arab nations but he may be helpless if the ICC orders his arrest.
However, the Islamist militia group in the country has vowed to shed havoc in the country should the president be arrested. The islamist militia had resisted the arrest of two government officials for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes in June last year. And they are again gearing to resist an impending arrest on Omar Bashir. But the court has decided it will get president Omar al-Bashir to face the law.
On the other hand, the black people of Darfur will be more than pleased to see the president face the law for his role in their plight. The Arab community believe that an arrest of the Sudanese president will destroy the work that has been done towards attaining peace and tranquility in Sudan so far; they believe it is best to allow Mr. Omar Bashir deal with the problem in Sudan gradually. They have asked the international community to grant him more time to deliver.
President Bashir in his defense has always insisted that the international community always exaggerated the scale of the crisis. He said that the Darfur issue was a traditional conflict over resources spun with with claims of marginalization by black Sudanese. The United States despite maintaining a close intelligence links with the Sudanese government, has been at the forefront of pressing for action on Darfur.
President Bashir is however facing charges for genocide of black Sudanese, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Human Rights Watch have documented atrocities in the western Sudanese region which reveals the Sudanese government as pursuing a well planned policy of ethnic cleansing.
In 2008, the government was said to be behind the aerial bombardment and ground attacks that drove thousands from their homes.
