Court ruling stops Sudan's president from leaving South Africa

On Sunday, a judge in South Africa barred the president of Sudan, who faces war crimes charges in the International Criminal Court (ICC), from leaving the country after attending an African Union summit.

On Monday, a judge is expected to hear an application calling for Omar al-Bashir's arrest, Reuters reports. He is accused in an ICC arrest warrant of war crimes and crimes against humanity during the conflict in Darfur, which the UN says has killed as many as 300,000 people and displaced 2 million. Al-Bashir was first indicted in 2009.

South Africa granted legal immunity to all delegates of the African Union, and the ruling African National Congress (ANC) released a statement that accuses the ICC of unfairly targeting certain countries. "The ANC holds the view that the International Criminal Court is no longer useful for the purposes for which it was intended," the party said. "Countries, mainly in African and Eastern Europe...continue to unjustifiably bear the brunt of the decisions of the ICC, with Sudan being the latest example." Sudan says the court order has "no value," with State Minister of Foreign Affairs Kamal Ismail telling reporters it is a "propaganda campaign against Sudan."

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