Security and military authorities in Port Sudan are facing mounting human rights accusations of committing violations against civilians from Darfur and Western Sudan, including arbitrary detention and extrajudicial executions, amid the ongoing war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces since April 2023.
Detainees and harsh sentences
The human rights organization “Darfur Victims” revealed that between 180 and 200 people from western Sudan are being held in Port Sudan Prison, noting that some face death sentences, while others have been sentenced to long prison terms on charges related to terrorism and crimes against the state.
The organization said in a report published on its website, that among the detainees is Omar Mohamed Omar Daris, whom it said was arbitrarily arrested upon his arrival at Port Sudan International Airport on March 15, 2024, by members of the Joint Security Cell, before being subsequently referred to the Court for Combating Terrorism and Crimes Against the State, where he faces a 10-year prison sentence.
The organization expressed concern over what it described as the “widening scope of prosecutions” against civilians from western Sudan, noting that terrorism laws are now being used “to target individuals based on tribal backgrounds or due to political stances and social suspicions.”
The organization called on the Port Sudan authorities to cease using tribal or geographic affiliation as a basis for suspicion or criminal charges, demanding that terrorism laws not be used to suppress political views or target anti-war stances, while ensuring that evidence and judicial proceedings are subject to independent and transparent legal oversight.
