Sudan rebels surrender to war crimes court

AFP/File Soldiers carry the coffins of their colleagues killed in an attack on a

n African Union base in Sudan's
by Mariette le Roux Mariette Le Roux 1 hr 59 mins ago
THE HAGUE (AFP) Two Sudan rebel leaders surrendered to the International Crimina
l Court in The Hague to answer to accusations of war crimes in Darfur, the court
said.
"Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain and Saleh Mohammed Jerbo Jamus, both suspected o
f having committed war crimes in Darfur, Sudan, arrived voluntarily this morning
at the International Criminal Court," a statement said.
"Both suspects will stay at the location assigned to them by the court until the
ir first appearance before the chamber" Thursday morning, after which they would
be free to leave the Netherlands pending further appearances.
The men face three counts of war crimes allegedly committed in an attack on the
Haskanita military base in north Darfur on September 29, 2007, that killed 12 pe
acekeepers with the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS).
Another eight soldiers were wounded.
The attack was allegedly carried out by fighters of the Sudanese Liberation Army
-Unity under the command of Jerbo, and splinter forces of the Justice and Equali
ty Movement led by Banda.
"It is alleged that the attackers, numbering approximately 1,000, were armed wit
h anti-aircraft guns, artillery guns and rocket propelled grenade launchers," sa
id the court statement.
The men allegedly destroyed AMIS infrastructure and stole items including refrig
erators, computers, cellular phones, vehicles, fuel, ammunition and money.
A pre-trial chamber had found reasonable grounds to believe that Banda and Jerbo
were criminally responsible for murder, an intentional attack on peacekeepers,
and pillaging, said the statement.
Summonses for the men to appear were issued in August last year, although their
existence was not made public.
"This is the culmination of months of efforts to secure the cooperation of Mr Ba
nda and Mr Jerbo," ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said in a separate statemen
t.
"The rebel commanders will now face justice. Their attack on the Haskanita Afric
an Union camp in 2007 caused the death of 12 African Union peacekeepers and wors
ened the plight of the thousands of civilians they came to help by leaving them
without protection."
The court said the men would make an initial appearance on Thursday, when they w
ill be informed of the allegations and of their rights.
A further hearing will be held "within a reasonable time" to confirm the charges
against them -- a requirement before the case can go to trial.
The case is the fourth before the ICC involving alleged warcrimes in Darfur.
Arrest warrants are outstanding for Sudan's President Omar al-Beshir, former gov
ernment minister Ahmed Haroun and militia leader Ali Kosheib.
The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the main rebel group in Darfur, welcome
d the news, in a statement sent to AFP.
"JEM commends and salutes the courage of Jurbo and Banda and the right decision
that they have taken in handing over themselves to the ICC," it said.
"Their move will support the cause of justice and accountability."
The movement called on Beshir and Haroun to follow their example.
Beshir rejects the jurisdiction of the ICC, the world's only independent, perman
ent court with authority to try genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes
, and has refused to hand over his two allies.
ICC judges have turned down a prosecution bid to prosecute another rebel chief,
Bahar Idriss Abu Garda, over the Haskanita attack, finding insufficient evidence
to link him to the killings. He had also appeared before the ICC voluntarily.
The United Nations says more than 300,000 people have been killed since the Darf
ur conflict broke out in 2003, when minority rebels took up arms against the Ara
b-dominated Sudanese government for a greater share of resources and power.
The Sudanese government puts the death toll at 10,000.