An Arab League spokesman on Saturday said Sudan had asked for an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers ahead of the expected indictment of the country's president for genocide and crimes against humanity in Darfur. According to the AP, Abdel Aleem el-Abyad said that Arab League chief Amr Moussa, who is currently in Paris, made phone calls Saturday to Arab foreign ministers to try to schedule a meeting.

The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court is expected to seek an arrest warrant Monday charging Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir with orchestrating violence in Darfur that has left hundreds of thousands of people dead. U.N. diplomats have warned the move could bring a backlash from Sudan's government.

Sudan’s U.N. ambassador Abdel-Mahmood Mohamed told reporters Friday that “all options are on the table” if Sudan president is indeed indicted. “The limit is the sky” he responded to a question at the UN headquarters about measures Khartoum could take.

The action by the prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo of Argentina, will mark the first time that the tribunal in The Hague charges a sitting head of state with such crimes.

© 2008 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)