Tribunal: No decision on Bashir warrant

THE HAGUE, Netherlands, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- The International Criminal Court said Thursday it hasn't decided whether to issue an arrest warrant for the Sudanese president, despite media reports.

In a statement issued from The Hague, Netherlands, the court said, "(No) arrest warrant has been issued by the ICC against President Omar Al Bashir of Sudan. No decision has yet been taken by the judges" concerning prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo's application for a warrant to be issued.

The three-judge panel's decision "will be made public by the normal way of a press release and publication on the court's Web site," the statement said.

Moreno-Ocampo in July presented evidence to the tribunal against Bashir, accusing the Sudanese leader of orchestrating a vicious campaign that left more than 300,000 civilians dead and drove more than 2.7 million people from their homes.

Moreno-Ocampo said he believes he has the evidence to show Bashir "bears criminal responsibility in relation to 10 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes."

Bashir is the first sitting head of state to be charged war crimes and crimes against humanity by an international tribunal.

The International Criminal Court is a tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. It is different from the International Court of Justice also seated in The Hague.