Sudan president arrives in Addis despite warrant
Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir. Photo/REUTERS
ADDIS ABABA, Tuesday
Sudanese President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir arrived in the Ethiopian capital today despite an international arrest warrant.
“He has just arrived,” Sudan’s deputy ambassador to Ethiopia, Mr Akuei Bona Malwal, said from the airport in Addis Ababa.
The Sudanese president, who had initially been expected to arrive late Monday, is due to stay in Ethiopia until Wednesday, officially to discuss bilateral issues at a meeting of the Sudanese-Ethiopian joint commission.
This is his fourth visit abroad since the arrest warrant was issued last March by the Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) over the conflict in Darfur.
President al-Bashir arrived this morning and was warmly welcomed by Ethiopian officials and the Sudanese community in Addis Ababa.
President al-Bashir was scheduled to meet Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi late today. Al-Bashir was also to address the Ethiopia-Sudan joint cooperation commission meeting in Addis Ababa on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The joint commission has prepared 17 different draft cooperation agreements for approval by leaders and respective ministers.
The cooperation agreements are focused on Economic and security issues.
According to the Sudanese delegation, the joint commissions will also discuss a controversial border issue between two countries.
Two countries have established a border commission to sort out various trans-border issues including amicable border demarcation.
The Ethiopian government faces opposition for any border deal it reaches with Sudan.
Al-Bashir’s visit is accompanied by tight security in Addis Ababa.
Recently he paid a visit to Eritrea, Libya and Egypt and attended a Qatar Arab league summit and a brief pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
On March 4, the ICC charged President al-Bashir with crimes against humanity, and war crimes in Darfur on a request by the prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo.
The UN estimates the Darfur conflict has claimed 300,000 lives since it broke out in 2003. ICC claims Bashir is directly responsible for 30,000 of the deaths.
