Al Jazeera journalist captured

Government forces confirm the arrest of Osama Sayed Ahmed who reported on the recent Blue Nile clashes

Osama Sayed Ahmed, correspondent for Arabic news network Al Jazeera, was arrested by the Sudanese security forces on Tuesday, a spokesperson of the Sudanese Journalists Network (SJN) said.The statement issued by the SJN stated that Osama Sayed Ahmed was captured for broadcasting news about the clashes in the Blue Nile state. The news was also confirmed by the military government’s spokesperson Khalid Alswaramy.

The SJN said, “From what has happened to our colleague Osama, we can infer the intentions of the regime to stub out free voice and whoever goes out in search for the truth without any bias.”

The SJN called for an investigation over the incident so that all those involved in the act can be held accountable. The spokesperson confirmed that the abuse was a clear violation of all norms and conventions, national as well as international, governing the operation of a free press in conflict zones.