The Sudanese Journalists Syndicate has condemned the detention of journalist Maha Al-Tilib by the SAF-controlled intelligence service in Port Sudan and the forced transfer of journalist Nader Atta from Khartoum for questioning over a published article.
Al-Tilib, a correspondent for Asharq News, was held for more than 10 hours at the intelligence headquarters in Port Sudan after being summoned for interrogation.
In a statement cited by Radio Dabanga, the syndicate said the two incidents reflected an alarming escalation in the SAF authorities’ targeting of journalists through summonses, prolonged detention, forced transfers and criminal complaints.
It warned that the measures were restricting independent journalism and creating a climate of intimidation that violated legal and constitutional guarantees protecting freedom of expression and the press.
The union strongly condemned Al-Tilib’s lengthy detention and said she had been questioned over allegations that she had published information which she had not reported through any media outlet or on her social media accounts.
The syndicate said the case reinforced concerns that inaccurate complaints and false allegations were being used by the SAF-controlled security apparatus as a pretext to restrict journalists and interfere with their professional work.
It also condemned the decision to transport Atta from Khartoum to Port Sudan to face questioning in a criminal case linked to an article he had written.
The union described the move as a serious violation of journalists’ rights that threatened their professional and personal safety and risked normalising the use of criminal proceedings by the Port Sudan junta to prosecute media workers over their opinions and reporting.
It questioned why Atta had not been interviewed in Khartoum, where he lives, noting that conducting the investigation there was both legally and practically possible.
Instead, he was forced to undertake a lengthy overland journey to Port Sudan, which the syndicate described as arbitrary, exhausting and unnecessarily restrictive.
Rising number of cases against journalists
The union said there had been a noticeable increase in criminal complaints filed against journalists in SAF-controlled areas, accompanied by summonses, forced travel, detention and burdensome legal procedures.
It warned that these measures increasingly appeared to be used as tools of pressure, intimidation and professional exhaustion rather than legitimate mechanisms for pursuing justice.
The syndicate said the cases demonstrated a worrying expansion of restrictions on press freedom under the SAF authorities at a time when investigations could be conducted through less intrusive legal procedures that respected journalists’ rights and dignity.
It called on the SAF-controlled authorities in Port Sudan to end the detention, forced transfer and prosecution of journalists through complaints used to restrict media work.
The union also demanded that journalists be allowed to carry out their professional duties without intimidation or harassment.
It urged the authorities to respect laws governing journalism, guarantee access to legal representation and fair trials, and stop using SAF-controlled state and security institutions to punish media workers over their opinions, articles or reporting.
