Bashir made the declaration Wednesday after receiving the recommendations of the Sudan People's Initiative, a Khartoum-backed plan that did not include any input from the key rebel group Justice and Equality Movement, the BBC reported.

A prosecutor from the International Criminal Court in The Hague is seeking genocide charges against Bashir for allegedly aiding pro-government Islamic militias in efforts to carry out an ethnic cleansing campaign against the black African inhabitants of Darfur, where up to 300,000 people have died and more than 2 million have fled their homes since 2003.

Although past Darfur cease-fires have failed, some say Bashir's move holds out hope for the troubled region. One unnamed international observer told the BBC that it could be an attempt by Bashir to put pressure on rebel groups to sign onto a 2006 peace agreement, which most of them rejected.

It could also be an attempt by the president to convince the international community to defer the ICC case against him, the broadcaster said.

Melamine found in fish feed from China HONG KONG, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Safety officials in Hong Kong say they have found elevated levels of the industrial chemical melamine in fish feed from mainland China.

Melamine is a substance used to make plastics and other goods that is currently at the center of China's tainted-milk scandal.

Hong Kong's Centre for Food Safety says the fish feed from a company in Southeastern China contained a level of 6.6 parts per million of melamine, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.

Fish farms have been warned not to use the feed.

Last month safety officials found melamine in eggs imported from China, leading to concerns that the chemical may be present in other parts of the food supply.

In a related matter, Hong Kong officials told the Journal they are investigating the cases of two girls with kidney stones who had consumed melamine-tainted milk products and biscuits.

A service of YellowBrix, Inc.