A HIGH-RANKING commander who armed and led Janjaweed militiamen in attacks on hundreds of villages in Darfur has come forward to say he did so at the behest of the Sudanese Government.

Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court are today expected to take a significant step towards putting Sudan's leaders on trial by presenting evidence against the President, Omar Hassan al-Bashir.

As the lawyers pursue a case against the country's rulers in Khartoum, some of the most damning evidence yet that the killing was directed by the Government has been provided by Arbab Idries, who was a commander between 2003 and 2007.