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The African Union has been criticized for being hypocritical regarding the charges facing Sudan President Omar al-Bashir at the International Criminal Court. In a statement to the United Nations Security Council, ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said the AU recognized the court’s mandate to end bloodletting in Darfur in 2009 and it should therefore support efforts to bring those responsible to book. “The role of the ICC in efforts to end the atrocities committed in Darfur and to hold those most responsible accountable is crucial and has a well-known history. Indeed, it is a role equally well recognized by the African Union at the genesis of the exercise of the Court’s jurisdiction vis-à-vis Darfur, Sudan,” she said.