The war of words has escalated between the Sudanese regime and Western countries and organizations in the aftermath of Khartoum's decision to revoke the licenses of thirteen non-governmental aid agencies this week. This came after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the United States and the European Union have warned that Sudan's move to expel aid agencies could endanger more than a million people. For its part, Amnesty International has accused the Sudanese government of turning the people of Darfur into hostages. However, the Sudanese regime refused to backtrack on its decision.
In a related development, the UN Security Council has started consultations on the proposal submitted by the Arab and African delegations to postpone the implementation of the arrest warrant. Khartoum has disclosed what it said were "bargains and offers" by Western US-led countries to contain the crisis.
The Sudanese State Minister for Foreign Affairs Ali Ahmed Karti said the US, France and Britain offered bargains relating to political issues that have nothing to do with the law.
In Cairo, Sudanese officials told Al-Masry Al-Youm that they rejected the arrest warrant, adding that the ICC had slaughtered the international justice like a sheep. Speaking to Al-Masry Al-Youm, Ambassador Idris Suleiman, deputy chairman of the Sudanese diplomatic mission, has accused Western nations of seeking to invade Sudan as a prelude to invade all Africa and the Arab region under the name of justice. He also accused Washington of seeking to subjugate Sudan to link its oil to West Africa's through a pipeline. For their part, the participants in the 21st international conference of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs have strongly condemned the arrest warrant against the Sudanese president, adding that this decision reflected double standards.
