The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres met with Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court over charges of genocide, whilst at the sidelines of the African Union summit reports AP.
Mr Guterres’s deputy spokesman Farhan Haq confirmed that the secretary-general met with Mr Bashir on grounds of “operational necessity”. Operational necessities allow the UN chief to meet with the Sudanese president “from time to time” he added.
He went on to state “that doesn’t obviate the need, of course, for respect of the International Criminal Court”.
Sudan’s Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour however said that the UN chief had “praised the efforts by Sudan’s government to achieve peace in Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan,” according to the AP.
Mr Haq said member states have “their own characterizations of meetings”.
“When we talk about meetings ... it’s not about praise or about compliments. It’s about results,” he added.
See more from AP here.
We need your support
Sri Lanka is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a journalist. Tamil journalists are particularly at threat, with at least 41 media workers known to have been killed by the Sri Lankan state or its paramilitaries during and after the armed conflict.
Despite the risks, our team on the ground remain committed to providing detailed and accurate reporting of developments in the Tamil homeland, across the island and around the world, as well as providing expert analysis and insight from the Tamil point of view
We need your support in keeping our journalism going. Support our work today.
For more ways to donate visit https://donate.tamilguardian.com.
