Sudan's wanted leader welcomed at summit
President al-Bashir, charged with Darfur war crimes, got the red carpet in Qatar.
DOHA, Qatar - Qatar's leader embraced Sudan's president in a red-carpet welcome yesterday as he arrived to attend an Arab summit in his most brazen act in defiance of an international arrest warrant on charges of war crimes in Darfur.
For host Qatar - a key U.S. ally that is a base for American warplanes and more than 5,000 U.S. troops - the Arab League meeting beginning today also showcases its desire to stake out a prominent role in regional affairs even at the risk of angering the West.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir had promised to attend the 22-nation gathering after assurances from members they would not enforce the International Criminal Court's arrest order issued March 4. But his lavish arrival sent an apparent message that Bashir will have a center-stage role at the two-day meeting.
Wearing a traditional Sudanese robe and white turban, a smiling Bashir was greeted at the airport with an embrace and kiss by Qatar's emir. They later had coffee with the head of the Arab League, Amr Moussa.
It was a low-risk trip for Bashir with high symbolic value for his Arab backers, who argue that carrying out the ICC's arrest would further destabilize Sudan as the Darfur conflict between the Arab-led government and ethnic African rebels enters a seventh year. Only Jordan and two other tiny Arab League members, the Comoros and Djibouti, are party to the ICC charter, but can take no action on Qatari soil.
ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo has said that Bashir should be arrested once he leaves Sudanese airspace, but it was unclear whether any military forces were monitoring his flight. The United States does not recognize the ICC's jurisdiction, citing fears that Americans would be unfairly prosecuted for political reasons. But President Obama earlier this month denounced the "genocide" in Darfur.
The Sudanese government's battle against rebels in the western Darfur region has killed up to 300,000 people and driven 2.7 million from their homes since 2003, according to the U.N.
The Doha gathering is another chance for Qatar to enhance its role as a regional broker, with the growing confidence to occasionally break ranks with traditional regional heavyweights Egypt and Saudi Arabia,
But Qatar's rulers are careful not to stray too far from the Western-leaning fold. The nation serves as a strategic military hub for U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Qatari officials who have also invested huge efforts to become an international sports venue -including bidding for the 2022 World Cup - worry that a maverick reputation could harm their chances.
