ICC Chief Prosecutor Visits Sudan

International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan poses during an interview with Reuters at the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands, March 3, 2022. REUTERS/Christian Levaux
International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan poses during an interview with Reuters at the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands, March 3, 2022. REUTERS/Christian Levaux
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ICC Chief Prosecutor Visits Sudan

International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan poses during an interview with Reuters at the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands, March 3, 2022. REUTERS/Christian Levaux
International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan poses during an interview with Reuters at the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands, March 3, 2022. REUTERS/Christian Levaux

The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor Karim Khan has arrived in Sudan, state media reported in the country still wracked by unrest since the 2019 ouster of its leader accused of genocide.

"The ICC prosecutor and a court delegation will hold a number of meetings with senior officials and he will be visiting the Darfur region," the state news agency SUNA said late Saturday.

Khan's visit will continue until August 25, SUNA said, a year after he visited the country for talks on outstanding arrest warrants over crimes committed during the 2003 Darfur war under ousted president Omar al-Bashir.

His visit this year is the third by an ICC prosecutor to Sudan since Bashir's ouster in April 2019, AFP reported.

Khan's predecessor, Fatou Bensouda, held talks in Sudan in May 2021, bringing the strife-hit country's former leaders one step closer to being tried at The Hague for war crimes.

Sudan has been reeling from deepening unrest, spiraling economic crisis, and a spike in ethnic clashes, including in Darfur, since a military coup last year led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

The October military coup upended a fragile transition put in place following the ouster of Bashir, who was deposed following months of protests.

Bashir remains wanted by the ICC over his role in the 2003 Darfur conflict.

The United Nations says 300,000 people were killed and 2.5 million displaced during the conflict.

Since his ouster, Bashir has been held in Khartoum's Kober prison along with several of his former aides who are also wanted by the ICC. He faces charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

In April, senior Janjaweed militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd al-Rahman, also known by the nom de guerre Ali Kushayb, faced the ICC in its first trial for war crimes in Darfur.



UN Rights Chief Arrives in Syria for First Ever Visit

Volker Turk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, attends a news conference at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, December 6, 2023. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo
Volker Turk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, attends a news conference at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, December 6, 2023. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo
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UN Rights Chief Arrives in Syria for First Ever Visit

Volker Turk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, attends a news conference at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, December 6, 2023. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo
Volker Turk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, attends a news conference at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, December 6, 2023. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk arrived in Syria's capital, Damascus, on Tuesday for the first ever visit of the global body's rights chief to the country.

Turk, an Austrian lawyer, will visit Syria and Lebanon from Jan. 14-16 and meet with officials, civil society groups, diplomats and UN bodies, the UN statement said, without giving further details.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was driven from power by a lightening opposition offensive last month, ending 50 years of family rule and raising hopes for accountability for crimes committed during Syria's more than 13 year civil war.

According to Reuters, under Assad, many UN officials and rights groups were denied access to the country to investigate alleged violations.

A spokesperson for Turk's office did not immediately provide further details of how many times he or his predecessors had tried to gain access to the country. The role of High Commissioner for Human Rights was created in 1993.