Sudanese dictator Omar al-Bashir, who was overthrown April 11 by military coup, was a good friend and close ally of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. During his 30-year rule, Bashir was indicted by the International Criminal Court in 2009 and 2010, charged with five counts of crimes against humanity, two counts of war crimes and three counts of genocide for his alleged mass killings in Darfur that cost some 300,000 lives.

Bashir could travel safely to only a few places in the world and Turkey was one of them. The last time he visited Turkey was right after the June 2018 elections to join Erdogan’s inauguration ceremony.

Six months before that visit, Erdogan had been to Sudan in December 2017, a trip that signified the close relations between the two countries.

While in Khartoum, Erdogan didn’t spare his chance to lash out at the West. “The imperialists devastated Africa, while Turkey will be there for a win-win,” he said. During his visit, the two leaders decided to increase the trade volume between their countries to $10 billion from $500 million. Turkish companies, mainly in the construction field, became involved in some 300 projects in Sudan following Erdogan’s visit.