Agents of Sudan’s Military Intelligence, the General Intelligence Service (GIS), and ‘special forces’ this week detained several human rights defenders in Sennar and White Nile state. Ethnically based detentions continue in northern Sudan.
Mohamed Jawda, member of the steering committee of the Sudanese Bar Association, told Radio Dabanga that they are closely following the developments in Sennar, parts of which were attacked by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Saturday, and in White Nile state, which is still under control of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
“It is clear that both parties to the war are targeting human rights defenders in these two states,” he stated.
Information about the fate of human rights defenders in Sennar is difficult to obtain, as communication with a large number of lawyers in Singa and surroundings was lost since the first day of the RSF attack on the state capital.
“We know that several lawyers in Singa were detained, both by the SAF and the RSF. Together with members of the local emergency rooms, we are trying to follow up on this matter as well as on the missing lawyers, hoping they managed to reach safe areas,” Jawda said.
“In Rabak, the capital of White Nile state, there is a fierce campaign taking place against them” he continued. “A joint force of Military Intelligence agents and members of the General Intelligence Service (GIS) has been raiding in offices of lawyers this week.
“The detention of four layers has been confirmed. The families of those who managed to flee are being terrorised and intimidated to provide information about their whereabouts.”
According to El Hadaf newspaper, GIS agents also held Adam El Degnawi, prominent lawyer, deputy chair of the White Nile Bar Association, member the Democratic Lawyers Association, and of the mainstream Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party. He was detained by GIS officers and private security agents from another lawyer’s office in Rabak and took him to an unknown location.
The same force raided a number of lawyers’ offices at the Rabak Market, and took three of them, blindfolded, with them to an unknown location.
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