United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres met with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir a few days ago on the sidelines of the African Union summit on grounds of "operational necessity," revealed a UN official to Asharq Al-Awsat. The summit was held in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa earlier this week. Stephan Dujaric, the spokesperson for the UN secretary general, said the two men discussed Sudan’s internal affairs, in addition to several important regional files. He told Asharq Al-Awsat that the UN Legal Counsel, Miguel de Serpa Soares, informed Fatou Bensouda, deputy prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, about the meeting. Accordingly, he said: “This meeting took place in the framework of the Secretary General’s mission concerning southern Sudan.” Dujaric also said that Guterres planned to meet with all presidents and prime ministers of the African Union states that are neutral to Southern Sudan. “The meeting with President Bashir was held in this context,” he explained. The spokesperson added that Guterres’ decision to sit down with Bashir does not lessen the UN Secretary General’s support to the ICC. A source at the ICC told Asharq Al-Awsat: “There are special rules and regulations that need to be respected before contacting any person wanted by the court.” “Those rules and regulations were respected by the UN office of legal affairs ahead of the Guterres-Bashir meeting,” the source stressed. The meeting is considered the first public gathering between a high ranking global official and the Sudanese President since the ICC charged Bashir with committing genocide during the war in Darfur. Western officials usually avoid meeting with Bashir. According to observers, the Sudanese President’s meeting with the UN chief marks a turning point in the international position towards Bashir.