Families of detainees in Sudan’s Blue Nile region have raised concerns over a new wave of arrests carried out by army-linked security forces, warning that civilians are being held without adequate information about their whereabouts or legal status.
Relatives of three detainees told local Sudanese media on Wednesday that the arrests had heightened fears over the safety of those in custody, with families struggling to establish where their loved ones are being held.
The families called on authorities to disclose detention locations, permit contact with relatives and lawyers, and release anyone being held without a lawful basis.
They also demanded that detainees be informed of the charges against them and given an opportunity to challenge their detention through the courts.
The reported arrests are being carried out by a joint security unit comprising personnel from Sudan’s military, the General Intelligence Service and the police.
The unit says its operations are intended to identify suspected collaborators with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), prevent security threats and combat criminal activity in the region.
However, its activities have drawn growing criticism from local rights advocates, who accuse security personnel of detaining civilians without transparent legal procedures and conducting unauthorized searches of personal mobile phones.
In June, the security unit announced that it had arrested approximately 120 people in the regional capital, Damazin, over alleged collaboration with the RSF, intelligence gathering and photographing sensitive locations without permission.
Some detainees were released after several days, while others remained in custody, according to local media reports.
The security unit also announced on September 1 that a court in Damazin had sentenced a defendant to death by hanging after convicting him of collaborating with the RSF.
Concerns about the detention campaign had already surfaced in September, when the Blue Nile Civil Society Initiative accused security agencies of holding civilians without trial and preventing some detainees from contacting their families.
The organisation also alleged that security personnel had exceeded their legal authority by intervening in civilian and commercial matters.
The latest complaints come amid continued fighting in Blue Nile, where the Sudanese military has been battling an alliance involving the RSF and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North.
Families and civil society representatives say the deteriorating security situation must not be used to justify arbitrary detention, restrictions on civil liberties or the denial of basic legal protections.
