Sudanese President Not To Stand In Next Election

Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir

Officials say Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir will not take part in coming presidential elections.

A senior official in the ruling party, Rabie Abdelati, told the news agency Reuters that Bashir "will not enter" the next presidential election, due to be held in four years.

He said the announcement comes as part of a series of reforms aimed at democratizing the country.

Bashir is the only sitting head of state to be indicted by the International Criminal Court, for war crimes and genocide in the war-torn Darfur region. He denies the charges.

compiled from agency reports