Darfur crimes: Hague reverses Bashir genocide ruling

International Criminal Court judges have reversed a ruling that there is insufficient proof to charge Sudan's president with genocide in Darfur.

A warrant was issued last year against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir for crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The Hague court's pre-trial chamber will now have to rule on whether to add three counts of genocide.

A top Sudanese official said the ruling was politically motivated, while rebels in Darfur welcomed it.

Prosecutors say Mr Bashir's government sought to wipe out three ethnic groups.

They argued last year that it had intended to destroy the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa peoples.

If genocide charges are now brought, they will be the first to be issued by the ICC against a sitting head of state.

African and Arab leaders have rallied around Mr Bashir and several nations have refused to honour the existing warrant.

Mr Bashir was travelling to Qatar for a one-day visit on Wednesday for talks on peace in Darfur with the Qatari leader, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifah al-Thani, Sudanese state radio said.

The UN says 300,000 people have died in the Darfur conflict since 2003.

'Error of law'

"The pre-trial chamber is directed to decide anew," presiding judge Erkki Kourula said, upholding the appeal lodged by prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo.

Judge Kourola said the standard of evidence set in the previous ruling had been "higher and more demanding than what is required".

The prosecution had argued that the time to provide definitive levels of proof was during the main trial and not when they were just seeking to bring charges.

"The decision by the pre-trial chamber not to issue a warrant in the respect of the charge of genocide was materially affected by an error of law," Judge Kourola said in court.

He stressed that the appeals court was not itself ruling that Mr Bashir was criminally responsible for the crime of genocide.

Reacting to the ruling in Khartoum, Rabie Abdelati, a senior information ministry official, accused the court of seeking to obstruct democratic elections due to be held in April.

"This procedure of the ICC is only to stop the efforts of the Sudanese government towards elections and a peaceful exchange of power," the official said.