Sudan President Omar al-Bashir leaves South Africa despite judge's order to stay

Sudan President Omar al-Bashir has left South Africa and will land in Khartoum on Monday night, the country's official news agency says.

It said a news conference will be held at the airport on his arrival at 6 p.m. (11 a.m. ET), along with Sudanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Ibrahim Ghandour.

Al-Bashir left amid a South African court case trying to compel authorities there to arrest him on international genocide charges.

He was attending an African Union summit in South Africa. The Sudan leader has been indicted by the International Criminal Court over war crimes and crimes against humanity.

A South African judge on Sunday ordered authorities to prevent al-Bashir from leaving the country, human rights activists said.

Al-Bashir appeared for a group photo with other African leaders at the summit in Johannesburg on Sunday, wearing a blue three-piece suit, a tie and a smile as cameras flashed.

The judge ordered the South African government to ensure that officials at all border posts enforce the court's decision, according to Caroline James, a lawyer with the Southern Africa Litigation Centre, a human rights group.

The court was expected to rule on Monday if al-Bashir should be handed over to the International Criminal Court to face charges of alleged genocide and human rights abuses.

Kamal Ismail, the Sudanese state minister for foreign affairs, told reporters in Khartoum that al-Bashir had received assurances from the South African government prior to his visit that he would be welcome and was expected to return to Sudan on schedule.

He said the court order preventing al-Bashir from leaving South Africa "has nothing to do with the reality on the ground there," adding that "until now things are normal, and there is no threat to the life of the president of the republic."

The African National Congress, which is South Africa's ruling party, said the South African government granted immunity "for all (summit) participants as part of the international norms for countries hosting such gathering of the AU or even the United Nations."