ICC Prosecutor to seek cooperation in Darfur killing

The International Criminal Court's prosecutor said Wednesday he plans to ask Sudan and other countries to cooperate in the investigation into the killing of civilians in Sudan's Darfur region.

The U.N. estimated 180,000 people have been killed in Darfur since fighting between Arab militias and African opposition groups began in 2003. Human rights groups put the death toll at over 300,000.

The ICC, based in The Hague, Netherlands, has been asked by the U.N. Security Council to investigate the killing. The Sudanese government also has set up its own court after objecting to the ICC involvement.

Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo told the council Sudan and "all other parties" in the conflict will be asked to cooperate.

"We will also request the assistance of other states, inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations," Ocampo said, adding that he intends to respect national laws in carrying his mandate.

The council asked the ICC to report on its activities every six months and the Darfur killing is ICC's major case.

The investigation was ordered after an independent panel concluded last year that war crimes and crimes against humanity have been commmitted in Darfur. But it ruled out genocide.

The panel has identified 51 individuals as "potentially bearing responsibility for the crimes" in Darfur. Their sealed names have been given to Ocampo.

Ocampo did not say when the investigation would officially begin. He informed the council of his travels and discussions with some African leaders and Sudanese officials and the collection of thousands of documents that would serve in the investigation.

The ICC is supported by 99 countries. The United States opposes the court, fearing that countries opposed to its foreign policy would seek to have the ICC prosecute U.S. diplomats and peacekeeping troops.