Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old American who captured the world's attention when he was arrested for bringing a homemade clock to his Texas school last month, met Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on Thursday in Khartoum.

Mohamed's case, which saw him pulled out of class and handcuffed when his teacher mistook the makeshift clock for a bomb, ignited outrage across the country and sparked dialogue about prejudice against Muslims in the U.S. In the end, police declined to file charges, but Mohamed decided to leave the school.

He has been applauded internationally, including by President Obama, for creating the clock.

But his visit with al-Bashir during a trip to his ancestral homeland has raised eyebrows, as the president is currently wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes in Darfur. The trip comes just days before Mohamed is set to visit the White House.

Al-Bashir has vehemently denied the charges against him, which stem from a war he oversaw in Darfur that began in the early 2000s. The conflict has left millions displaced and hundreds of thousands dead in the years since. Al-Bashir is charged with crimes against humanity, including murder, torture, rape and genocide.

The teen's father is Mohamed Hassan al-Sufi, a Sudanese immigrant to the U.S. who once ran for president of the nation against al-Bashir and was one of his rivals.

Mohamed posted a Vine of the family's arrival in Sudan earlier this week.

Currently, Ahmed is traveling with his family in tow, visiting education facilities in Qatar and making a pilgrimage to the Muslim holy site of Mecca.

Trying to get to the black stone A photo posted by Ahmed Mohamed (@official_istandforahmed) on Oct 10, 2015 at 5:58am PDT

He will be back in the U.S. on Saturday for a Muslim organization's gala event.

On Monday, Mohamed is expected to visit the White House at the invitation of President Obama.

He will be attending the White House Astronomy Night held that evening, which will also be attended by leading NASA scientists and astronauts.

When news of Mohamed's arrest first broke in September, President Obama's administration voiced support for the teen.

"It's clear that at least some of Ahmed’s teachers failed him," Press Secretary Josh Earnest said at the time. "That's too bad. But it's not too late for all of us to use this as a teachable moment and to search our own conscience for biases in whatever form they take."