The International Criminal Court just announced that on July 14, the prosecutor will present his second case on crimes committed in Darfur. Last year, the prosecutor secured the indictment of two Sudanese; a government minister and a janjaweed commander were accused of colluding to commit crimes against humanity in Darfur.

In recent weeks the prosecutor has been dropping some serious hints that the next round of indictments will target top government officials. (And as the BBC's UN reporter speculates below, this week's stunning janjaweed attack on UNAMID may have been orchestrated to punish the international community over these forthcoming indictments.) Rather than backing down in the face of Sudanese pressure, it seems to me that the international community ought to stand united behind the ICC prosecutor and use these indictments as points of possible leverage over the government--which so far has not been cooperating with the deployment of UNAMID.

The BBC's UN Correspondent is interviewed about the deadly janjaweed attack on the UN-AU peacekeeping force in Darfur. Ban's statement is here.

Now is the time for member states to double-down their commitment to UNAMID and provide the mission with the equipment and support it needs to succeed.