| The Obama administration is defending its decision to send a representative to the inauguration of Sudan's president, who won re-election despite facing an international arrest warrant for war crimes. Omar al-Bashir was sworn in Thursday to another five-year term. Among those in attendance was a U.S. foreign service officer. The State Department notes that the inauguration also was for a vice president, Salva Kiir, from the largest party representing southern Sudan. Al-Bashir is sought by the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands for allegedly masterminding atrocities in Darfur. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Friday that al-Bashir should cooperate with the court and "should be held accountable." |
