Omar Al Bashir is free to travel across Africa. The African Union (AU) voted Friday not to arrest the Sudanese president wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

At a meeting in Libya on Friday, AU heads of state adopted a resolution saying they would not cooperate with the ICC order to arrest Bashir or surrender him.

The resolution says the AU "deeply regrets" that the United Nations ignored its previous demand for the world’s permanent war crimes court to postpone the arrest warrant against al Bashir.

The AU wants a deferment of the indictment, saying the warrant compromises peace efforts in Darfur.

The ICC has charged the Sudanese president with war crimes and crimes against humanity for masterminding violence that has led to the death of some 300,000 people in Darfur since 2003.

Under the court's founding Rome statute, member countries are required to arrest suspects within their territories.

Khartoum said on Saturday the decision meant Bashir would not fear arrest, even if he visited South Africa and 29 other states on the continent signed up to the global court.

Sudan's foreign ministry spokesman Ali al-Sadig said he thinks “that Africa is now one front against the ICC ... Most Africans believe it is a court that has been set up against Africa and the third world. The African Union decision makes us feel that we are not alone, that people are supporting us."

Libya was one the first countries to ignore the ICC and host al Bashir, despite the international warrant against him issued in March.