Head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself president-for-life. He has fallen out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to
ArabizeDarfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it.
launched talks in Khartoum Saturday on Sudan's ailing economy and the insurgencies in its border regions, despite a boycott by mainstream opposition and rebel groups.
Bashir, wanted by the
International Criminal Court... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ...
for war crimes, announced the dialogue in January 2014 but spent more than a year making preparations and negotiating conditions with opposition groups.
Most groups boycotted Saturday's conference, calling instead for a meeting abroad to agree on terms for talks, but Bashir said they could still join.
"We have not and will not close the door to them," he said at the conference's opening session.
Bashir also said he could declare a permanent ceasefire with rebels battling him in the western Darfur region and in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states.
"We announce our wish -- if the other side shows a credible commitment -- to have a permanent ceasefire," he said.
Last month, Bashir issued a decree declaring a two-month ceasefire and pardoning any rebel leaders who attend the talks.
But the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North, which has been battling government forces in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, and the main Darfur rebel groups did not respond.
The SPLM-N has said the military launched air raids on South Kordofan after the ceasefire was announced.
Saturday's opening was attended by Arab League
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
chief Nabil al-Arabi as well and dozens of smaller political parties, many allied to Bashir's ruling National Congress Party.
Several small rebel factions from Darfur also attended the opening.
The talks are aimed at finding a solution to the country's ailing economy and the conflicts in Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan.
Sudan has been under a US trade embargo since 1997 over charges of rights abuses and backing hard boy Islamist groups.
Its economy suffered a further blow when South Sudan became independent in 2011, taking with it three-quarters of the country's oil production.
Darfur has also been mired in violence since 2003, when black hard boyz mounted a campaign against the Arab-dominated Khartoum regime because they felt they were being marginalised.