The Sudanese government blasted the justification provided yesterday by the office of the United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon for calling president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir over the weekend. This is believed to be the first contact between the two men since Bashir was indicted last march by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for his alleged role in the Darfur war crimes. Sudan official news agency (SUNA) said Bashir discussed with Ban the general situation in Darfur and the nomination of the Nigerian diplomat Ibrahim Gambari as head of the joint U.N.-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID).

The agency said that the UN Secretary General emphasized his support to president Bashir and “unrelenting backing” to him and Sudan to push the peace efforts and also thanked him for securing the release of the two aid workers kidnapped last August.

But yesterday the UN spokesperson Martin Nesirky suggested that the report on Sudanese media was overblown.

“The Secretary-General has made absolutely clear that this call was made purely on humanitarian grounds. You have two people, one of whom is now, as you heard really seriously ill, gravely ill. The Secretary-General wanted to make sure that all efforts are being undertaken in Sudan to try to secure the release of these two people, who are UN peacekeepers; AU-UN peacekeepers” Nesirky told reporters at the daily press briefing.

A Nigerian security officer and a Zimbabwean child protection officer working for the U.N./African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur were abducted by armed men on Aug. 29 in the town of Zalengi in West Darfur.

Ban’s call marked the 100th day since the kidnapping, which Khartoum has blamed on bandits seeking a ransom.

Nesirky confirmed that an advice given to Ban by his legal advisers that he should distance himself politically from Bashir.

“It’s absolutely right that there is advice to keep a distance, but it is absolutely vital to underscore that this is not an ordinary conversation. This was about a humanitarian intervention, and I think you need to see it in that context” he added.

A senior unnamed Sudanese official speaking to the independent Al-Ahdath daily described the explanation provided by Ban’s office as “flimsy and illogical besides being absurd”.

“Ban phone Bashir in his capacity as president of Sudan. If he did not call him with this recognition then why did he call?” the official asked.

“The reasoning given is a disregard to the norms and international conventions” he added.

Despite backing of Arab and African leaders, several officials particularly Western ones have announced that they will not hold contacts with the Sudanese president in light of his indictment.

Mourners in the western Venezuelan state of Tachira yesterday laid to rest the body of a university student who was shot dead at a protest while unarmed police looked on.

The killing of Jesus Eduardo Ramirez Bello, 19, brought to the forefront long-running tensions between the federal government of President Hugo Chavez and opposition governors, including the governor of Tachira.
Almost immediately after Tuesday’s shooting, Minister for the Interior and Justice Tareck El Aissami blasted the police and opposition government of Tachira for failing to avoid the bloodshed.

“What there is no doubt about, is that the police of Tachira state and under the authority of the irresponsible governor of that state used improper procedures that resulted in the unfortunate casualty of one dead student,” El Aissami said in a statement.

A Tachira police spokesman defended the department, saying that the federal government had left them without arms.

The national government is “saying that we were responsible, which is completely false,” spokesman Ignacio Bolivar stated. “Those are baseless statements.”

The governor of Tachira is Cesar Perez Vivas, an opposition governor who unseated the previous pro-Chavez governor last year.

Venezuelan governors and mayors not aligned with Chavez have complained publicly in recent months that the federal government has targeted them and their services.

Honduras’ government said today that there will be no deal for ousted leader Manuel Zelaya to leave the country unless he goes as a private citizen — not as the country’s president.

Brazil criticized the interim government for its stance against Zelaya, who has been holed up at the South American nation’s embassy in Tegucigalpa ever since he slipped back into Honduras nearly three months ago.

Late Wednesday, as news emerged of talks on a possible agreement letting Zelaya depart for Mexico, that country requested guarantees for his safe passage as a distinguished guest and sent a plane to Honduras to pick him up Zelaya.

Honduras’ interim Foreign Minister Carlos Lopez said the aircraft was diverted to El Salvador, however, when it became clear Zelaya would only be allowed to leave if he accepts political asylum as a private citizen — which Zelaya has refused, because that status might hinder his campaign to drum up opposition back home.

Information Minister Rene Zepeda said Thursday that a deal is off the table unless Zelaya takes asylum.

“There are no new talks with Mexico and Brazil on Zelaya’s case,” Zepeda said. “If these countries want to get Zelaya out of Honduras, they will have to do it according to the law: by giving him asylum in their territories, but without a title. If that happens, our government will accept that and they can take him immediately without any problem.”

Zelaya continues to face arrest on treason and abuse of power charges for ignoring a Supreme Court order against holding a referendum on changing the constitution, which led to the June 28 ouster.