"Thrice in the name of Almighty Allah that I shall never hand any Sudanese national to a foreign court. "

What's It All About, Omar?

Omar al-Bashir is the "President" of the Sudan.

As a young man, al-Bashir joined the Sudanese Army and studied at a military academy in Cairo. In 1973, he joined the Egyptian Army when it was at war with Israel. In 1989, al-Bashir took charge of a military coup in Sudan that overthrew Sedeq al-Mehdi, then immediately banned all political parties and dissolved the parliament. He then took the roles of chief of state, prime minister, chief of the armed forces, and minister of defense.

In October, 1993, al-Bashir became president of the country. The legislative powers of the nation were given to al-Bashir at this time, who ruled the nation as a dictator from that point on. In 1996, he was elected president in a showcase national election, and by 1998 he and his Presidential Committee established a new constitution. A law to limit political "associations" that opposed al-Bashir was put into place by 1999.

In December, 1999, al-Bashir sensed a threat to his power by al-Turabi who wanted to give the National Assembly power to remove al-Bashir from office. In response, al-Bashir declared a state of national emergency, suspended the constitution, disbanded the National Assembly, and stripped al-Turabi of his governmental power. al-Turabi was arrested and put into custody in 2001. That year, the new presidential elections were held, and most Sudanese refused to vote, claiming that al-Bashir would simply fix the results in his favor either way. al-Bushir continues to rule Sudan; his second term is for five years, and after this time the law forbids him to run again.

Al Bashir has been accused of harboring terrorists and Islamic extremists. Al-Bashir claims that he offered the United States the capture of Osama Bin Laden and intelligence data during the Bill Clinton administration, but was ignored by United States officials. He spoke against the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, but is still monitored in regard to terrorist activity in Sudan. President George W. Bush has asked al-Bashir to help defeat terrorism.

Al-Bashir may be best-known for the wars between the northern and southern parts of Sudan for over 19 years. He led and launched military attacks, for which he and his troops were accused of human rights violations, including rape, torture, and murder of women and children. In 2002, al-Bashir agreed to grant autonomy to the south for six years.

In early 2003, a rebel group in the western province of Darfur began attacking government targets. The rebels accused the Sudan government of neglecting black Africans in favor of Arabs. The mostly nomadic Arabs have been in conflict with black African farmers over land rights for years. Al-Bashir gave money to Islamic militias to combat the rebels, causing tens of thousands of people in Darfur to be killed. It is estimated that over 2 million people have fled their homes.

The Janjaweed militias are said to be responsible for most of the violence in Darfur. The Janjaweed are Arab tribesmen who have attacked villages to force black Africans to abandon valuable water and pasture. Human rights groups believe that the Janjaweed are armed and recruited by the Sudan government. The government has repeatedly promised to disarm the Janjaweed, but there is no evidence that it has done so.

The African Union has deployed about 7,000 troops to Darfur, but they have done little to reduce the violence. This is at least partly because the force is too small to have much impact in an area the size of France. While the United Nations has pressured Sudan to allow a large UN force to take charge of peacekeeping in the region, al-Bashir has refused to cooperate.

Al-Bashir has been named #1 on the list of Parade Magazine's The World's 10 Worst Dictators.