Kenya urged to appeal against Bashir arrest warrant

By Steve Mkawale

The Kenyan Government has been urged to immediately appeal against a ruling that issued a warrant of arrest against Sudan President Omar al Bashir.

Nominated MP Mohammed Affey termed the judgment as disappointing and one that will undermine the country’s war in Somalia to fight Islamic militant group-the Al Shabaab.

The Kenya High Court on Monday issued a warrant of arrest against Sudan's President Omar El Bashir [Photo:Reuters]

Affey told a news conference at parliament building that Sudan was a crucial ally in the war against the Al Shabaab.

"The country is enjoying good relationship with Sudan. We are currently at war and currently seeking diplomatic leverage within the region and beyond but with his kind of judgment, we are going to create enemies," said the MP.

Judge Nicholas Ombija’s judgment on Monday has sparked a diplomatic row between Khartoum and Nairobi.

Authorities in Sudan opted to send away the Kenyan envoy following the judgment.

The International Criminal Court wants Bashir for crimes committed in Darfur.

The government of Kenya failed to arrest him during a visit last year when he attended a ceremony in Nairobi to mark the adoption of Kenya's new constitution

Kenya has ratified the International Criminal Court's founding Rome statute, which theoretically obliges it to execute the court's warrants, but failed to arrest the Sudanese leader when he visited the country in August 2010.