A South African judge on Sunday ordered authorities to prevent Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, who is in South Africa for an African Union summit, from leaving the country because of an international order for his arrest, human rights activists said.
Al-Bashir appeared for a group photo with other African leaders at the summit in Johannesburg on Sunday, wearing a blue three-piece suit, tie and smile, as cameras flashed.
A South African judge ordered authorities to prevent al-Bashir from leaving South Africa because he is wanted by the International Criminal Court, activists said.
And there he is...Sudanese president & ICC wanted man #OmarAlBashir at #AUSummit in Johannesburg. pic.twitter.com/ld7VpJdGW0— Thulasizwe Simelane (@ThulasSims) June 14, 2015
"President Omar al-Bashir is prohibited from leaving the Republic of South Africa until a final order is made in this application," Judge Hans Fabricius said, according to local media reports.
Fabricius ordered the South African government to ensure that officials at all border posts enforce the court's decision, according to Caroline James, a lawyer with the rights group Southern Africa Litigation Centre. The court is expected to rule on Monday if al-Bashir should be handed over to the ICC to face charges of alleged genocide and human rights abuses.
Kamal Ismail, Sudan's state minister for foreign affairs, told reporters in Khartoum that al-Bashir had received assurances from the South African government prior to his visit that he would be welcome, and was expected to return home on schedule.
Ismail said the court order preventing al-Bashir from leaving South Africa "has nothing to do with the reality on the ground there," and added that "until now, things are normal, and there is no threat to the life of the president of the Republic."
The African National Congress, which is South Africa's ruling party, said the federal government granted immunity "for all [summit] participants as part of the international norms for countries hosting such gathering[s] of the AU or even the United Nations."
President @UKenyatta and Sudan President Omar Hassan al Bashir examine documents at the #AU summit in South Africa pic.twitter.com/f6aS9GX73a— Manoah Esipisu (@MEsipisu) June 14, 2015
"It is on this basis, amongst others, that the ANC calls upon government to challenge the order now being brought to compel the South African government to detain President al-Bashir," the ANC said, adding that African and Eastern European countries "continue to unjustifiably bear the brunt of the decisions of the ICC."
Even before Sunday's events, the African Union asked the ICC to stop proceedings against sitting presidents, and said it will not compel any member states to arrest a leader on behalf of the court.
Al-Bashir has traveled abroad before, but local authorities did not detain him.
ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said South Africa is under a legal obligation to arrest al-Bashir, and surrender him to the court. Bensouda's office has been in touch with South African authorities on the Sudanese president's reported visit.
If al-Bashir is not arrested, the matter will be reported to the court's assembly of states and the United Nations Security Council, which first referred the case of Sudan's Darfur region to the ICC in 2005, she said.
In a statement released Sunday, the European Union called for South Africa to execute the ICC arrest warrant, and detain al-Bashir.
International human rights organizations also called for his detention, with Human Rights Watch pointing out that South Africa has both domestic and international obligations to arrest al-Bashir.
Not only does #SA have international legal obligation, it also is obliged under its own domestic law to #ArrestBashir. - @EliseKeppler— Human Rights Watch (@hrw) June 14, 2015
The charges against al-Bashir, who took power in a 1989 coup, stem from reported atrocities in the conflict in Darfur, where 300,000 people were killed and 2 million displaced in a government campaign, according to United Nations figures.
He has visited Malawi, Kenya, Chad and Congo in the last few years, all of which are ICC member states. The court doesn't have any power to compel countries to arrest him, and can only tell them they have a legal obligation to do it.
In March, the ICC halted proceedings against Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta after the prosecution said it did not have enough evidence against him. Kenyatta, who is also attending the summit, was charged in 2011 as an "indirect co-perpetrator" in post-election violence that left more than 1,000 people dead in 2007 and 2008. He has always maintained his innocence.
Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto is on trial for crimes against humanity in the election-related violence.
Additional reporting by Mashable