Fears for South Kordofan civilian detained by Sudan’s military intelligence

The Human Rights and Development Organization (HUDO) has voiced concern that a civilian detained by military intelligence in Abbasiya in South Kordofan might be subject to torture.

A statement issued by HUDO yesterday says that on April 11, military intelligence operatives in Abbasiya arrested Alsamani Osman Mahmoud at the weekly market of Souq Aljabal Abbasiya locality, purportedly for being affiliated to the Sudan People’s Liberation Army – North (SPLA-N).

He was taken to Abbasiya military base where he was detained

“Since then, he has been kept in isolation which creates fear that he could be subjected to torture and ill-treatment,” the statement says.

Mahmoud is 50 years old, married and a father for four children, a former teacher and a trader. HUDO cites “reliable information that, Alsamani is under pressure to admit in matters he never committed, that they accuse him of associating with SPLA-N, and that he is accused of being in contact with some of the SPLA-N officers.

HUDO calls on Sudan government to stop military intelligence from arresting civilians and bring to an end the State of Emergency in the conflict states; to unconditionally release Alsamani Osman without delay or to file a recognized case against him in the courts of law, and to respect rights of civilians in conflict areas.

Since the war erupted in South Kordofan by 2011, many of civilians were arrested by MI and some were tried before military court when the Military Act was amended in 2013 for that purpose. Those violations were mostly conducted at Abbasiya locality, the HUD statelemt reads.

It cites other examples where on November 25 2013 Saeed Ahmed Al Awad was arrested in Chamchaka of Abbasiya and tried him before a military court with other nine civilians. On June 23 2014, two brothers were arrested by military intelligence in Hagar-Jawad of Dilling and deported to Dilling MI custody. On September 2 2016, four people among them two ladies were arrested by MI in Almaash village of Dilling locality.

Kutum

On Monday members of the security services of Kutum in North Darfur arrested a displaced person of camp Kassab named Hafez Yahya.

A witness told Radio Dabanga that three members of the security services led by a man named Hafez, took displaced person Hafez Yahya, a driver of a rickshaw from Kutum transport station to their offices on Monday and then turned him into the military garrison on Tuesday.

He said they did not know the reasons and motives for the arrest of Hafez Yahya.

He expressed concern that he might be tortured or ill-treated by members of the security services.

He appealed to human rights organisations to intervene to release him.