Sudan Swats Away Genocide Charge

Sudan aims to obstruct an international tribunal's efforts to hold its leader responsible for genocide, the BBC reports. The International Criminal Court's charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity against president Omar al-Bashir are designed to engender tension between tribal groups in Darfur, a senior official said today, denying that the ICC has jurisdiction within Sudan.

Sudanese officials further claimed they were working to rally support among international allies to block the ICC. The conflict leaves the African Union in a precarious position, the BBC adds, as its members must decide how to respond to the charges while simultaneously facing the prospect of having to enforce them should the time come. (More Crisis in Darfur stories.)