Omar al-Bashir Net Worth - Pulptastic

What is Omar al-Bashir’s Net Worth?

Omar al-Bashir, the former President of Sudan who was ousted in a coup d’état in April 2019, has a net worth of $1 billion. He first came to power in 1989 when he led a military coup to oust the Prime Minister of Sudan. Al-Bashir was elected President three times, but his elections were scrutinized for possible corruption. In 2009, he became the first sitting president to be indicted by the International Criminal Court for directing a campaign of mass killing, rape, and pillaging against citizens of Darfur.

A leaked document from WikiLeaks alleged that al-Bashir embezzled $9 billion in state funds, but these claims have been denied.

Early Life and Career

Omar al-Bashir was born in 1944 in Hosh Bannaga, a village on the outskirts of Shendi, to a family of African-Arab descent. His father worked as a dairy farmer and his uncle was a journalist and politician who opposed South Sudan.

Al-Bashir’s family moved to Khartoum North when he was entering secondary school, and there he became a supporter of Al-Hilal. After joining the military, he was sent to the United Arab Emirates in 1975 as part of a Sudanese military attaché. Upon his return, he was made a garrison commander.

Al-Bashir’s Rise to Power

In 1989, Omar al-Bashir led a military coup that ousted the unstable coalition government under Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi. He then instated the Islamic military code and suspended all political parties, assuming the positions of chief of state, prime minister, chief of the armed forced, and Minister of Defense. In 1993, he appointed himself President and disbanded any rival factions or parties that had formed since the coup.

Omar al-Bashir’s Legacy of Corruption and War Crimes

Omar al-Bashir became president of Sudan in 1996 and was reelected in 2000 and 2005. In 2010, he won another election, but it was criticized for corruption and inequality. Al-Bashir was known for his involvement in the war in Darfur, where he was accused of ethnic cleansing against non-Arabs. The United Nations estimated that around 300,000 people died as of 2010. Al-Bashir was also responsible for a 21-year long civil war in Sudan, which he allegedly looted the country’s wealth. In 2019, the Sudanese Armed Forces ousted him from power, and he was later convicted for money laundering and corruption.

Transfer of Omar al-Bashir to ICC

The acting Sudanese military government agreed to transfer Omar al-Bashir to the International Criminal Court (ICC) after the completion of his money laundering and corruption trial. The ICC had charged al-Bashir with international crimes, including genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes committed in Darfur, but faced jurisdictional challenges in holding him accountable.

Al-Bashir became the first head of state indicted by the ICC in 2009, but his arrest warrant was largely ignored as many states, including China and Saudi Arabia, refused to arrest and surrender him to the ICC. The Arab League and the African Union also condemned the warrant, and the Sudanese government retaliated by expelling international aid organizations from the country.

It was only after his arrest and ousting by the Sudanese military in 2019 that the charges against al-Bashir began to be taken more seriously.

Omar al-Bashir May Have Stashed $9 Billion in Foreign Bank Accounts

A 2009 wikileak cable revealed that Omar al-Bashir, the former President of Sudan, may have hidden $9 billion in foreign bank accounts. According to Luis Moreno-Ocampo, a prosecutor, London banks alone may be holding hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars from siphoned oil funds.