Ex-Sudan president Bashir gets 2 years in lockup

15 December


A court in Sudan has convicted former president Omar al-Bashir of corruption, handing down a 2-year unsuspended term.


Bashir was ousted from office after 3 decades in power by a military coup in April of this year, after months of nationwide protests against his authoritarian rule. The trial of the former president began in August. On Saturday, the court in the country's capital, Khartoum, convicted Bashir of corruption and illegal amassing of foreign currency.


The former president will not be detained in a prison, but kept in a lockup at a different facility. The court explained this is in consideration of Bashir's age -- 75 years. Bashir has also been charged for his role in the coup which brought him to power in 1989, as well as for his involvement in the killing of protesters in the months prior to his ouster and arrest. Analysts say it is possible that the former president could get a death sentence.


The International Criminal Court in The Hague has issued an arrest warrant for Bashir on charges relating to the death of 300-thousand residents of western Sudan during the Darfur Conflict. The military that currently rules Sudan has not consented to handing over Bashir to the ICC.—NHK