Bashir’s visit to Chad causes stir

Refugees raise deep concerns; EU demands Sudanese president’s arrest Long-time IDPs (Internally Displaced People) from eastern Chad’s refugee camps expressed  deep concerns on Tuesday over Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir’s upcoming visit.In an interview with Radio Dabanga, refugees explained that each visit from a Sudanese government official was followed by operations aiming to influence the refugee population and its opinions, sometimes even going as far as arresting refugees. The refugees accused the operations to be a work of coalition between Sudanese and Chadian forces. They called for Bashir to be extradited to The Hague where he is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and crimes against humanity. One of the camps’ leaders also called on the international community to arrest Omar al-Bashir and corner the countries allowing his visits.EU demands Bashir’s arrestMeanwhile, in Brussels, the EU called on the Chadian Government to respect its commitments to the ICC as a signatory of the treaty. High representative for Foreign and Security Policy in the European Union, Catherine Ashton, expressed her concerns over Bashir’s visit to Chad in a statement urging the Chadian government to implement the decisions of the ICC and proceed with the Sudanese president’s arrest and extradition.