Washington  - The United States will hold Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir responsible for any deaths that occur in Darfur because of his decision to expel foreign aid groups, US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Tuesday.

"This a horrendous situation that is going to cause untold misery and suffering for the people of Darfur, particularly those in the refugee camps," Clinton said.

"But the real question is, what kind of pressure can be brought to bear on President Bashir and the government in Khartoum to understand that they will be held responsible for every single death that occurs in those camps?" she asked.

Al-Bashir earlier this month announced the expulsion of 13 humanitarian organization providing food, medical and other assistance in Darfur after years of fighting that is estimated to have left more than 300,000 people dead and at least 2 million displaced.

His decision came shortly after the UN International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant on charges of war crimes connected to the conflict in Darfur.

Clinton said that al-Bashir's government has put more than 1 million people at risk by ousting the relief agencies, and she called on countries with friendly relations with Khartoum to ramp up pressure for the Sudanese government to reverse the decision or at least replace the aid workers facing expulsion.

"We are looking for the most effective ways to convince and demonstrate to the government of Sudan that they have now assumed an even greater sense of responsibility and infamy in the eyes of the world by turning their backs on these refugees, whom they created in the first place," Clinton said. dpa