AU Summit: 25th Ordinary Session Opens In South Africa
The ordinary session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union has opened on Sunday in South Africa, report Channels TV.
According to the report, african leaders congratulated newly-elected presidents including Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria, Mozambique’s Filipe Nyusi and Pakalitha Mosisili of Lesotho.
The report added that the leaders also congratulated Sudanese President Omar Al Bashir for conducting a successful poll despite a court order issued by a Pretoria high court judge, Hans Fabricious preventing the president from leaving South Africa.
The order, it reported further, is pending a decision of the court, to be made after an urgent application that Al Bashir be arrested today.
The SA judge made the order after granting the state a 3-hour period in which to prepare arguments in response to South Africa litigation centre’s application that President Jacob Zuma and the National Prosecuting Authority arrest Al Bashir on the order of the International Crimes Court (ICC).
As a signatory of the Rome treaty, South Africa is obliged to arrest the president, but the AU has previously refused to heed the ICC call, accusing them of targeting African leaders.
On Saturday, Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari, chaired the Peace and Security Council meeting at the 25th AU Summit holding in Johannesburg.
Talks at the meeting largely focused on security challenges facing some African countries, as participants sought better ways of tackling insurgency in some West African countries.