Sudanese president calls for support for new Somali gov't

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir called Monday on all African, Arab and Islamic countries to support the new Somali government to boost peace, security and stability in Somalia and to end the long-time suffering of the Somali people.

Al-Bashir made the remarks during a meeting with new Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed on the situations in Somalia and the positive developments it had witnessed.

At the end of the meeting, al-Bashir stressed Sudan's keenness on peace and stability in Somalia, and expressed optimism that the newly-elected Somali government with a broad base in the country would start a new era in which Somalia enjoys development and stability.

Al-Bashir said he hoped Sudanese-Somali relations would witness continuous development.

The Somali president, on his part, said his country rejects the allegations of the International Criminal Court (ICC) against the Sudanese president.

The allegations, which served as the base of an arrest warrant against al-Bashir, targeted Sudan's sovereignty and dignity, he said.

Early this month, The Hague-based ICC issued an arrest warrant against al-Bashir for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the country's restive western region of Darfur between2003 and 2008.

The Somali president lauded Sudan's role towards the realization of reconciliation between Somali factions and boosting peace efforts in his country.

He stressed that Sudan was capable of solving all its issues in consultation with the Arab and African countries without intervention of others.

The Somali president briefed his Sudanese counterpart on the current situation in Somalia, the reconciliation and consultation efforts aimed at supporting the new government in Somalia to enable the country to restore its local and regional role.

Somalia's new government was sworn in in Djibouti City in February. Somalia, a nation of about 8 million people, has not had a functioning national government since warlords overthrew Siad Barre in 1991 and then turned on each other.