Johannesburg  - South African President Thabo Mbeki on Tuesday described as unhelpful the request by a prosecutor in the International Criminal Court to have Sudanese President Omar al- Bashir indicted for genocide and war crimes.

Referring to the implementation of the North-South Comprehensive Peace Agreement and efforts to resolve tensions in Sudan's troubled Darfur region, Mbeki said "It does not help to be now considering these indictments" because both issues "would require very serious inputs by President al-Bashir."

Al-Bashir would be sending an envoy to South Africa later this week to discuss the issue of his possible indictment, Mbeki revealed.

"I hope that we can solve matters so that we can move forward with regard to these other important challenges in Sudan," Mbeki said.

The chief prosecutor of The Hague-based ICC, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, has asked the court to issue an arrest warrant for al-Bashir on suspicion of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity over events in the western Sudanese province of Darfur.

The ICC is expected to rule in October or November whether to issue the warrant.

Mbeki was speaking after talks in Pretoria with visiting Egyptian President Hosny Mubarak on various issues, including Sudan. Egypt sits on the African Union Peace and Security Council.

Moreno-Ocampo's move has been criticized by many on the African continent as likely to deepen tensions in Sudan. The AU and the Arab League have asked the UN court to hold off on moving against al- Bashir.

Mubarak proposed postponing the case against al-Bashir in the ICC for around a year to allow the Sudanese leader time to implement commitments he made to the Arab League.

Following a visit by Arab League chief Amr Moussa to Khartoum, the League said it had obtained a pledge from al-Bashir to try to try those it suspects of crimes in Darfur at home - with international scrutiny.

"If he could implement those then the case could perhaps be postponed for about 12 months during which something could happen to decrease the tension," Mubarak proposed. (dpa)