The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday launched an investigation into suspected war crimes in Sudan's Darfur region, a development likely to present problems for the Bush administration as it opposes the court's existence and maintains close intelligence links with the Khartoum government.

Up to 300,000 people are thought to have been killed during the two-year-old conflict in western Sudan, and more than 2m people have fled their homes. Independent aid and rights organisations accuse rebel groups, the government and allied Arab militia the Janjaweed of atrocities.