( CNN ) -- A Sudanese rebel commander , accused of being involved in the 2007 deaths of a dozen peacekeepers in Darfur , voluntarily arrived in the Netherlands Sunday for an International Criminal Court hearing at the Hague this week , officials said . Sudanese rebel commander Bahar Idriss Abu Garda was summoned to appear before the ICC . Bahr Idriss Abu Garda , of the Zaghawa tribe of Sudan , is charged with three war crimes allegedly committed on September 29 , 2007 , when 1000 rebel-led soldiers surrounded and stormed an African Union peacekeeping base in Haskanita , in North Darfur , the international court said . Twelve peacekeepers were killed and eight were wounded in the overnight attack , the deadliest single attack on AU peacekeepers since they began their mission in late 2004 . Abu Garda , who faces charges of murder , directing attacks on peacekeepers and pillaging , was summoned to appear at the pretrial hearing at 3 p.m. Monday . The court confirmed Abu Garda voluntarily arrived at the Hague Sunday afternoon on a commercial plane , and that no arrest warrant was necessary . The court has put a gag order on Abu Garda to prevent him from speaking publicly about his case . Three other suspects , including Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir , were also summoned , but remain at large . `` The voluntary appearance of Abu Garda might serve to encourage other suspects currently at large to come before the Court to be heard with all guarantees of a fair trial , '' said Silvana Arbia , registrar of the international court . The attack on the AU peacekeepers came months before the 7,000-strong force was replaced by a U.N. peacekeeping force of 26,000 troops . The U.N. force , known as UNAMID , is a joint operation between the United Nations and the African Union . It took over formally at the end of 2007 . The conflict in Darfur began in 2003 after rebels in the western region of Sudan began attacking government positions . Sudan 's government responded with a fierce military campaign that led to some 200,000 deaths and forced 2 million people to flee their homes , according to the United Nations .
Bahr Idriss Abu Garda faces charges in deaths of peacekeepers in 2007 . 12 killed when a soldiers stormed North Darfur African Union peacekeeping base . Abu Garda scheduled to appear at the pretrial hearing at 3 p.m. Monday . Three other suspects , including Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir , are at large .