A Sudanese court has sentenced 12 men to death for their role in a Darfur rebel attack on the capital, Khartoum.

The judge presiding over the anti-terrorism court in Omdurman Wednesday also acquitted four suspects and transferred the cases of four others to juvenile courts.

With today's sentencing, 50 people have been condemned to death for the May assault on Khartoum and its neighboring city, Omdurman.

More than 200 people were killed in the attack by the rebel Justice and Equality Movement. The group crossed the desert from Darfur to carry out their first-ever attack on the capital.

After the assault, the Sudanese government rounded up hundreds of people and established special courts to try the suspects.

Judicial officials say defense lawyers failed this week in their effort to challenge the legality of the courts.

Amnesty International has denounced the trials as a sham. On Monday, the London-based human rights group accused the government of holding hundreds of people without charge or access to lawyers.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.