Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague have appealed against the decision not to indict Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir for genocide.

Earlier this year, the judges said there was insufficient evidence to support the three charges of genocide in Darfur. An arrest warrant for Mr Bashir was issued on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The Sudanese president has dismissed all the allegations made by the ICC, arguing that the state has a responsibility to fight rebels who took up arms in Darfur in 2003. The United Nations estimates that some 300,000 people have died in the Darfur conflict and more than two million fled their homes in that time.

International opinion is divided on the issue. The African Union feels that the arrest of President al-Bashir would lead to political instability in the area. At an AU summit last week, African leaders said their request to the United Nations Security Council to delay Mr al-Bashir's indictment has been ignored, so they would not assist in efforts to detain him.
 

photo of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir by aheavens (Flickr)