Former Sudan warlord remanded in custody

The leader of a Sudanese militia, which fought a war in the western Darfur region 20 years ago, has denied committing war crimes. As previously reported in Legalbrief Today, former janjaweed leader Ali Kushayb has been indicted for crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The former warlord who was arrested in the Central African Republic two weeks ago has been transferred to The Hague to face trial. The ICC has charged Kushayb with 504 assassinations, 20 rapes and the forced displacement of 41 000 people. Al Jazeera reports that Kushayb was informed of the charges via video link from a detention centre because of coronavirus measures. Kushayb who spent 13 years on the run stemming from allegations relating to the devastating conflict in the western Sudanese region, said he was aware of the charges ‘but this is untrue’. ‘They made me come here and I hope that I will get justice,’ said Kushayb, speaking in Arabic through an interpreter. Justice Rosario Aitala pointed out that the hearing was simply a formality to confirm the identity of Kushayb, who is also known as Ali Muhammad Abdelrahman, and the charges against him. ‘This is not the hearing for presenting your defence, you will have opportunities to do that. This is only the hearing for the judge to be satisfied that you have been informed of the charges,’ he said. Aitala set a so-called confirmation of charges hearing on 7 December when the court will weigh if there is enough evidence to support the prosecution charges and proceed to trial.