Two detained as Sudan security raids opposition homes

Security forces in En Nahud, West Kordofan, detained two senior members of the Sudanese Congress Party (SCP) on Monday. “During raids on homes belonging to SCP cadres in En Nahud on Monday, security forces detained senior members Abdel Wahab Haroun Abakar and Hisham Ahmed Hamed,” Mastour Ahmed, SCP’s Political Secretary reported to Radio Dabanga. He stressed that the ongoing detentions will not stop Party members from “continuing their struggle to topple the regime”. On Saturday, seven SCP members were detained in En Nahud, following a protest calling for the release of party leader Ibrahim El Sheikh, and other detained party cadres. The SCP chairman was detained on 8 June by security forces in En Nahud, on charges of undermining the Sudanese Constitution, after he had publicly denounced the widespread attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on civilians in Darfur and Kordofan. Security officers have urged El Sheikh more than once to offer his apologies for what he said about the RSF militias, in exchange for his release. The SCP leader has categorically refused to apologise. The SCP announced that their leader expressed the official party opinion. A first hearing of the case against El Sheikh was planned to take place on 12 June in the court of En Nahud. The prosecutor, however, said that the case file against their client had been taken by the security apparatus, “in order to add new details”. File photo: People in En Nahud demonstrating against the detention of Ibrahim El Sheikh, 12 June 2014 (Radio Dabanga) Related:Seven party members, 513 others detained in Sudan (18 August 2014) Ailing El Sheikh returned to West Kordofan (14 August 2014) Sudan activists campaign for release of political detainees (12 August 2014) Call to release political detainees in Sudan (24 June 2014)