The European Union has threatened Sudan with new sanctions if the
government continues to withhold Darfur war crimes suspects wanted by
the International Criminal Court.
In a declaration issued
Friday, EU leaders meeting in Brussels said they are "deeply concerned"
by what they called Sudan's "lack of cooperation" with the ICC.
They
urged the Sudanese government to work constructively with the court,
the EU and the international community, and called for additional
measures if it fails to do so.
The EU already has an arms embargo on Sudan and visa bans on a number of Sudanese officials.
Sudan
has made it clear it will not surrender any suspects to the court. ICC
prosecutors have issued arrest warrants for two Sudanese nationals, government official Ahmed Harun and militia leader Ali Kushayb.
The
two men are charged with 51 counts of war crimes and crimes against
humanity, including acts of murder, torture, rape and forcible
displacement.
The International Criminal Court's chief
prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, has said he is pursuing another case
against senior Sudanese officials believed to be involved in the Darfur
conflict.
Darfur has endured more than five years of conflict
since rebels took up arms against the government and government-backed
militias in 2003. Experts say the fighting has killed up to 300,000
people and displaced more than 2.5 million others.
Earlier this
month, the United Nations Security Council issued a resolution
demanding Sudan's cooperation in bringing Darfur war criminals to
justice.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
