The Al Jazira Observatory for Human Rights has accused security and military bodies operating under the Sudanese Armed Forces-controlled authorities in Al Jazira state of arbitrary detention, financial extortion, witness intimidation and other serious violations of the law.
In a statement issued on Monday, the rights group said practices attributed to the Federal Investigations Department and the state’s security cell included terrorising civilians, demanding money from detainees and their families, and using vaguely worded legal provisions in ways that undermined judicial safeguards and the rule of law.
Al Jazira state, including its capital Wad Madani, is currently controlled by the SAF and allied armed groups after the army recaptured the area from the Rapid Support Forces.
According to cases documented by the observatory, federal investigators have repeatedly prolonged investigations without justification, leaving suspects in detention for between two and three months.
The detainees were reportedly held at Federal Investigations Department facilities near the Amjad transport station in Wad Madani, without their cases being completed within a reasonable period.
The observatory said it had also received information indicating that some prosecutors had cooperated with federal investigators and the SAF-aligned security cell in ways that damaged fair-trial guarantees.
Several prosecutors reportedly refused to continue working with federal investigators after becoming aware of alleged bargaining and financial extortion involving suspects and their families.
The rights group also highlighted irregularities in cases registered under Article 174 of Sudan’s Criminal Code, which covers theft.
Procedures that would ordinarily be expected to take a limited period were allegedly extended for between seven and 10 days or longer.
During that time, suspects and their relatives were reportedly required to move repeatedly between police stations and Federal Investigations Department offices.
The observatory said this created opportunities for negotiations and financial settlements conducted through intermediaries, personal connections and unofficial channels.
Multiple testimonies also accused the SAF-controlled security cell in Al Jazira of arresting witnesses, intimidating them and forcing them to deliver statements prepared in advance.
The identities of some witnesses were reportedly concealed during legal proceedings, raising serious concerns about the integrity of investigations and the defendants’ right to a fair trial.
The observatory said some people had been detained for between four and six months without being permitted to meet lawyers or communicate with their families.
Such treatment, if confirmed, would violate the right to legal representation and other protections provided under Sudanese law and relevant international conventions, the group said.
The statement also cited allegations that detainees and their families had been asked to pay between five million and 20 million Sudanese pounds in exchange for their release or for the acceleration of release procedures.
The observatory said the alleged practices could amount to corruption, extortion and abuse of public authority.
It also raised concerns about the spread of SAF-aligned military formations inside residential neighbourhoods in Wad Madani and other towns across Al Jazira state.
These reportedly include bases belonging to the Sudan Shield Forces in Wad Madani’s Al Zamalek neighbourhood, as well as facilities operated by the Joint Forces in other residential districts.
Both formations are allied with the SAF in its war against the RSF.
The observatory said it had received reports that unofficial detention centres were operating inside some of the military compounds.
It called for an investigation into whether the sites were legally authorised and subject to judicial oversight.
The rights group expressed deep concern over what it described as the deterioration of the rule of law under the SAF-controlled administration in Al Jazira.
It said allegations of arbitrary detention, financial extortion, coerced testimony and the exploitation of state institutions for private interests were eroding public confidence in Sudan’s justice system.
The observatory called for an independent and impartial investigation into all allegations involving federal investigators, the security cell and SAF-allied armed formations.
It also demanded immediate access to lawyers and families for all detainees, guarantees for the independence of prosecutors and the judiciary, and the closure of all unofficial detention facilities.
The group further called for military formations to be removed from cities and residential neighbourhoods and for detainees to be held only in facilities formally recognised under Sudanese law.
The allegations could not be independently verified. The SAF-controlled authorities, the Federal Investigations Department, the Sudan Shield Forces and the Joint Forces had not publicly responded to the accusations.
