Historic ruling by the International Criminal Court on crimes in Darfur

On Monday, the International Criminal Court convicted a militia leader for the first time who had ever been brought to trial for war crimes committed in the Darfur region of Sudan more than 20 years ago.

The court found Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman guilty of a total of 27 counts of war crimes, including crimes against humanity, rape, murder, and persecution. The sentence he will receive will only be determined after a further hearing.

The conviction in the first and only trial for crimes in Sudan since the case was referred to the court by the United Nations Security Council in 2005 is considered a milestone for the court.

Arrest warrants remain in place for Sudanese officials, including former President Omar al-Bashir, who is accused of genocide.

(reuters, max)