Postponement of Al-Bashir's trial for the 1989 coup to 1 September
Side of Al-Bashir's court session yesterday. A.F.B.
Yesterday, a Sudanese court postponed the trial of ousted Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir and 27 others accused of seizing power in a coup in 1989, to the first of September.
"The trial was postponed to Tuesday, the first of September, to discuss the demands presented by the defense lawyers," the presiding judge said during the trial session.
During the session, the lawyers called for the trial to be postponed, on the grounds that the courtroom was "insufficient" to ensure social distancing measures aimed at avoiding the spread of the Corona virus.
If Al-Bashir and the others are convicted, they could face the maximum penalty of death. The 28 defendants are being tried for organizing the coup that brought Bashir to power in 1989, an unprecedented trial in the Arab world.
Al-Bashir is also wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of committing genocide, ethnic cleansing, and other crimes against humanity during the conflict in the western Darfur region, which caused 300,000 deaths and millions of displaced people.