{"id":20070153,"date":"2024-01-31T12:00:45","date_gmt":"2024-01-31T11:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/?p=20070153"},"modified":"2024-04-15T18:07:41","modified_gmt":"2024-04-15T16:07:41","slug":"sudans-islamic-movement-condemns-us-efforts-to-pursue-ahmed-harun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/en\/all-news\/article\/sudans-islamic-movement-condemns-us-efforts-to-pursue-ahmed-harun","title":{"rendered":"Sudan\u2019s Islamic Movement condemns US efforts to pursue Ahmed Harun"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Islamic Movement in Sudan yesterday announced its rejection of the US decision to designate Ahmed Harun, Minister of Interior Affairs during the Al Bashir regime, under the War Crimes Rewards Program (WCRP). The Darfur Bar Association welcomed the step but seriously doubts its feasibility.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The US Department of State designated Harun<\/a>, Minister of Interior Affairs and Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs\u00a0under the Al Bashir regime (1989-2019),\u00a0under the War Crimes Rewards Program on Monday. Since 2007, he is wanted by the International Criminal Court\u00a0(ICC)\u00a0for war crimes and crimes against humanity<\/a>\u00a0allegedly\u00a0committed in Darfur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harun (also spelled Haroun) was arrested after the ousting of President Omar Al Bashir in April 2019 and held at Kober Prison in Khartoum North. Though the ICC repeatedly called for his extradition<\/a>, this never happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In April last year, days after war broke out between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Harun and several other Islamist hardliners managed to escape and fled to eastern Sudan. After arrest warrants for them were cancelled<\/a> in Kassala, they rare moving freely in Red Sea state, where the de Sudanese facto government is operating from, Kassala, and El Gedaref.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a statement \u201cto the Sudanese people\u201d yesterday, the Islamic Movement described the US State Department’s decision on Harun, as \u201cflawed and shameful\u201d, stating that \u201cthe USA is not even a member of the [Rome Statute Rome Statute of the] ICC\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The movement accused the US administration of \u201ccovering up the crimes of murder, rape, displacement, plundering and looting practiced by the sons of Dagalo [the RSF) and their militia fighters and support from<\/a> known countries and regimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe US administration is trying to link these crimes to the symbols of the Islamists, which is and immoral attack based on political bankruptcy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Islamic Movement, the US government \u201cis morally unqualified to address issues of defending victims of barbaric attacks, grave violations\u201d and \u201callows rogue states to supply the [RSF] rebels with weapons and finances. The statement also accused the USA of \u201csupporting the Israeli aggression against innocent people in Gaza\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Overdue\u2019<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Darfur Bar Association (DBA) said in a statement that it appreciates \u201cthe measures, decisions and actions by international institutions and nations to combat impunity in the Sudan,\u201d though \u201cthey remain of no real value\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The association said they will continue to examine the feasibility of such measures \u201cissued from time to time\u201d by the international community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eastern Sudanese lawyer Ramzi Yahya told Radio Dabanga from El Gedaref that \u201cthe decision is sound but long overdue\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said that Harun was present in El Gedaref during the past months. \u201cWe now have appealed the state prosecution\u2019s dismissal of our official complaint against the man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHarun is moving around in full view of the authorities, but the de facto government so far has not taken any decision to arrest him, which means that the responsibility for his detention now lies with the people\u201d.<\/p>\n