Sudan Resists G8 Mandate to Comply with ICC

On Sunday, the Government of Sudan rejected threats of Group of Eight power sanctions if it does not hand over two Sudanese indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes in Darfur. At last week's G8 summit, representatives from the member nations (Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States) threatened additional charges against Sudan in the UN Security Council if it does not cooperate with the ICC. A statement issued by the G8 warned "We call on all parties concerned to abide by their obligations under the relevant UN Security Council resolutions; we would otherwise support further appropriate action in the UN Security Council."

Following the G8 statement, Sudan remains defiant. Spokesperson of the Sudanese foreign minister, Ali al-Sadiq urged the G8 to recognize the real reasons for the Darfur conflict and work to resolve them. While he did not give details of how to fulfill his request or what changes Sudan would undertake if appeased, al-Sadiq promised that threats would not influence Sudan's response to the ICC.