Sudan's Cabinet on Tuesday voted to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said, one step closer to potentially bringing ex-president Omar Al Bashir to trial for genocide.
“Today, in our Cabinet meeting, we have unanimously passed a bill to join the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court,” Mr Hamdok said on Twitter.
Sudan has since August 2019 been led by a transitional civilian-military administration which vowed to bring justice to victims of crimes committed under Al Bashir.
The African nation has yet to appoint a legislative body and the decision still needs the approval of Sudan's sovereign council.
Mr Hamdok said they would hold a joint council meeting “to pass it into law".
Al Bashir, who ruled Sudan with an iron fist for three decades, was deposed in April 2019 after months of protests in Sudan.
He is wanted by the ICC to face trial on charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“Justice and accountability are a solid foundation of the new, rule of law-based Sudan we're striving to build,” added Mr Hamdok.
But the prime minister gave no further details as to what joining the ICC might mean in terms of putting Al Bashir and other Sudanese wanted by the court on trial, either in Sudan or in The Hague.
Sudan's transitional administration is in talks with the ICC about options for trying Al Bashir and his former aides.
One stumbling block was that Sudan was not a party to the ICC's founding Rome Statute.
Al Bashir is being held in the high-security Kober prison in the capital Khartoum, along with former aides also wanted by the ICC.
The former president was convicted in December 2019 for corruption and has been on trial in Khartoum since July 2020 for the Islamist-backed 1989 coup which brought him to power.
The UN says 300,000 people were killed and 2.5 million were displaced in the Darfur conflict that occurred during Al Bashir's mandate.
War broke out in 2003 when African minority rebels, complaining of systematic discrimination, took up arms against Al Bashir's Arab-dominated government.
Khartoum responded by unleashing a notorious militia known as the Janjaweed, recruited from among the region's nomadic peoples.
Human rights groups have long accused Al Bashir and his former aides of using a scorched-earth policy, raping, killing, looting and burning villages.
In late May, former ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda visited Darfur and pressed Sudanese officials to hand over Al Bashir and other wanted leaders.
Last year, alleged senior Janjaweed militia leader Ali Kushayb, also wanted by the ICC, surrendered to the court.
ICC judges said in July he will be the first suspect to be tried over the Darfur conflict on multiple counts of rape, murder, and torture.
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
The Baghdad Clock
Shahad Al Rawi, Oneworld
8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
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Four motivational quotes from Alicia's Dubai talk
“The only thing we need is to know that we have faith. Faith and hope in our own dreams. The belief that, when we keep going we’re going to find our way. That’s all we got.”
“Sometimes we try so hard to keep things inside. We try so hard to pretend it’s not really bothering us. In some ways, that hurts us more. You don’t realise how dishonest you are with yourself sometimes, but I realised that if I spoke it, I could let it go.”
“One good thing is to know you’re not the only one going through it. You’re not the only one trying to find your way, trying to find yourself, trying to find amazing energy, trying to find a light. Show all of yourself. Show every nuance. All of your magic. All of your colours. Be true to that. You can be unafraid.”
“It’s time to stop holding back. It’s time to do it on your terms. It’s time to shine in the most unbelievable way. It’s time to let go of negativity and find your tribe, find those people that lift you up, because everybody else is just in your way.”
'Skin'
Dir: Guy Nattiv
Starring: Jamie Bell, Danielle McDonald, Bill Camp, Vera Farmiga
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
