UN 'must arrest Darfur suspects'

Humanitarian Affairs Minister Ahmed Haroun and Janjaweed leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd al-Rahman, also called Ali Kushayb, are wanted on 51 counts.

The ICC prosecutor told the council they worked together systematically to attack civilians in Darfur.

The Sudanese government has rejected the international court's jurisdiction.

More than 200,000 people have died in the four-year conflict and some two million are in camps after fleeing their homes.

A UN Security Council team is due in Khartoum on 17 June to discuss the issue with Sudan's president.

Eyewitnesses

In other developments:

• Outgoing UN head of humanitarian affairs in Sudan Manuel da Silva says he believes rebels in Darfur are ready to go back to the negotiating table for peace talks and are tired of fighting.
• The US has warned Sudan to accept the deployment of a joint UN-African Union in Darfur or face sanctions such as a no-fly zone.

"No crime was committed there without Harun's intervention. He was the one who recruited the Janjaweed militia," Reuters news agency quotes the ICC prosecutor as saying.

SUSPECTS' PROFILES

• Ahmed Haroun
  - In charge of Darfur in 2003 and 2004 as deputy interior minister
  - ICC says his work included recruiting, funding and personally arming Janjaweed militia
  - Quoted as saying that he had been given the authority to either kill or forgive in Darfur for the sake of peace and security
  - As humanitarian affairs minister he oversees Darfur's two million refugees
  - Aid agencies accuse of him of hindering their efforts to access the displaced
• Ali Kushayb
  - Known as "colonel of colonels"
  - Commanded thousands of Janjaweed in mid-2003
  - Allegedly promoted and witnessed rape and torture as part of the war strategy
  - The government say he has been in detention since November for Darfur attacks
  - But witnesses told AP that he has been travelling in Darfur under police protection

Q&A: Sudan's Darfur conflict

Q&A: The ICC

Sudan under fresh pressure

"I have eyewitnesses who saw Ahmad Harun delivering weapons in his own helicopter to the militia in three different states in Darfur," Luis Moreno-Ocampo said.

"I have eyewitnesses watching Kushayb involved in the execution of prisoners, in the rape of women," he said.

In February, the two men were named by the ICC as suspects on a total of 51 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Correspondents say it is unclear whether Mr Kushayb is already in the custody of the Sudanese government for attacks committed in Darfur.

Earlier, Mr Haroun said the move against him was political and that he had a clear conscience.

In the past, Sudan has complained that the ICC has not indicted any Darfur rebels who it says are also guilty of murderous attacks.

RELATED INTERNET LINKS
International Criminal Court
African Union
Sudan government
Focus on Africa
Network Africa
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites