Sudanese president not to visit Turkey

Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir has pushed back his planned visit to Turkey, Turkish aviation officials said on Sunday, adding that the controversial leader canceled his Sunday flight without any explanation, Hürriyet Daily News reported.

It was not clear whether al-Bashir will come to Turkey on Monday or Tuesday for a summit of Islamic nations, the officials added, according to a report by the Doğan news agency.

The statement came hours after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan defended al-Bashir’s visit by saying, “A Muslim can never commit genocide.”

“Those world leaders who criticize us, have they ever visited Darfur? Their information is solely based on what the rapporteurs are reporting. These kinds of moves will not contribute to world peace,” Erdoğan said Sunday in an address to party members.

 “It’s not possible for a Muslim to commit genocide,” he said.

“That’s why we are comfortable [with the visit of al-Bashir].”

The International Criminal Court, or ICC, has issued an arrest warrant for al-Bashir, citing his alleged role in the atrocities perpetrated in the Darfur region of Sudan, which claimed the lives of more than 300,000 people.

Turkey is among the few countries to have not yet ratified the Rome Statute, which requires compliance with ICC rulings.

The European Union asked Turkey on Friday to align its policy on the al-Bashir issue with that of Brussels and indirectly demanded the cancellation of the visit for the sake of the ongoing membership talks.

In the meantime, international human rights organizations urged Turkey to arrest al-Bashir if he arrives in Istanbul.

“We are aware of the fact that there are those who want to corner Turkey through al-Bashir’s visit. These people should know well our sensitivities about human rights violations. I went to Darfur myself. I want to ask: How many of these worlds leaders paid a visit to Sudan, to Darfur? I went there to see it with my own eyes,” Erdoğan said. Erdoğan added that he did not observe that genocide was being committed during his Darfur visit.