Egypt: 'Consequences' if Bashir is charged

CAIRO, Feb. 22 (UPI) -- Egypt says there will be "dangerous consequences" if an International Criminal Court arrest warrant is issued against Sudanese President Omar Bashir.

If Bashir is branded a war criminal by the court in The Hague, the political situation inside Sudan, including that of the troubled Darfur region, could deteriorate, the Egyptian ambassador to Sudan told KUNA, the Kuwaiti news agency, Sunday.

"The political implications of any arrest warrant against President Bashir will have dangerous consequences on the situation in Darfur in specific and on Sudan in general," said Ambassador Suleiman Awwad, adding that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has talked with French President Nicolas Sarkozy about the International Criminal Court issue, KUNA said.

The ambassador said indications are that at least some members of the United Nations Security Council are opposed to issuing a war crimes warrant for Bashir, whom a Hague prosecutor says helped orchestrate the alleged genocide of African tribes by gangs of Islamic militiamen in Darfur.