[JURIST] Sudan has agreed to cooperate with the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] in its pursuit of rebel leaders from neighboring Uganda, Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said Thursday. The ICC has issued arrest warrants [JURIST report] for five leaders of Uganda's rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) [BBC profile], and earlier this week unsealed the warrants [ICC press release]. Although Sudan has supported the LRA in the past, it has agreed to assist the ICC in arresting leader Joseph Kony [ICC arrest warrant, PDF]. The Sudanese government has also said that will allow Ugandan troops to enter Sudan [JURIST report] to chase down wanted LRA leaders. According to human rights groups, the LRA has abducted over 30,000 Ugandan children, forcing them to become fighters and concubines in a conflict that has displaced an estimated 1.9 million people. In June, the ICC launched an investigation [JURIST report; ICC materials] into Sudan's efforts to prosecute war crimes in its own Darfur region [JURIST news archive], but Sudan has thus far rejected the ICC's efforts. AP has more. The Sudan Tribune has local coverage.

ALSO ON JURIST  Text: Uganda LRA arrest warrants | Op-ed: Why the International Criminal Court Needs Darfur (More Than Darfur Needs the ICC)