Khartoum – Darfur 24
The Sudanese Journalists Association issued its first annual report regarding monitoring press freedoms and the conditions of journalists in Sudan for the period from September 2022 to September 2023.
During this period, the report shet light on many violations suffered by journalists and press institutions, in the second half of the period of the war that broke out between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces RSF.
The report referred to 249 violations against journalists during the war, including 4 cases of killing, 10 cases of journalists being captured, 17 cases of shooting, 18 arrests, 23 cases of death threats, and other violations.
Introduction:
The Sudanese Journalists Association was established in extremely complex circumstances that came after a military coup during the transitional period and after an absence of 33 years. This formed a large gap in union practice, in addition to the legal complications that stood in the way of union presence in Sudan in general, which made the nascent union face the challenge of recognition by the de facto authority, and even by some media institutions, especially governmental ones.
However, all of this constituted a great motivation for work and perseverance in an attempt to fill the union vacuum at all levels.
The Journalists Syndicate was born strong, and it received its sources of strength from the local and international support and from the fact that it derived its legitimacy from the union base it chose, and from the 1987 agreement that Sudan ratified, and most important of all, the union membership remained aware of the challenges and aware of the impact it had on their issues.
The Freedoms Secretariat has made efforts to monitor and document the violations that occurred against journalists and press institutions – which we consider so far not comprehensive ، which constituted an obstacle to practicing the profession in a way that guarantees its independence and integrity, which it derives from the real presence of press freedoms in the public sphere.
This report is divided into two parts, one part documents the violations that occurred since the Freedoms Secretariat assumed its duties on September 11, 2022 until April 14 of this year, that is, the day before the outbreak of the bloody conflict in Khartoum. While the second part documents all the violations that occurred during the ongoing bloody conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces until September 11, 2023.
part One:
From September 11, 2022 – April 14, 2023
Violations against independent media witnessed a continuous increase at the Sudanese level, especially after the coup of October 25, 2021, which led to a decline in the conditions of the press on a daily basis.
This period was characterized by increased government censorship and the dominance of repressive regulatory agencies over journalists and the media. The most frequent violations are publication reports that are filed against journalists and the newspapers through which they publish, most of which are reports that have taken a cryptic nature.
Journalists were also prosecuted under more than one law in a single publishing case. In this context, the Liberties Secretariat issued a statement in which it called for activating the principle of equality before the law and abolishing all laws restricting press freedom, including the Press and Publications Act, and turning it into internal regulations that contribute to controlling and promoting the profession.
Photographers covering the protests were subjected to harassment and attacks that amounted to beatings, confiscation of photographic equipment, and filing of reports against them.
It is worth noting that all reports of this type are reserved and not deleted, even in the absence of the complainant several times, while proper legal procedure requires the court to listen to the accused and issue an arrest warrant against the complainant to bring him in, investigate him, and listen to both parties to put an end to the report. The number of violations during this period reached about (51) violation cases, including cases that were repeated several times to the same journalist, such as reports and summonses. They are classified according to the nature of each violation.
injury:
Journalist Omar Henry was injured by a bomb in his hand near the “Sharuni” parking lot in Khartoum while covering the September 13, 2022 procession in Khartoum.
While Journalist Salma Abdel Aziz was injured by a bomb in her left side while covering the December 13, 2022 protest in Khartoum.
Kidnapping
Regular forces kidnapped journalist Abdel-Rahman Al-Ajeb near his workplace twice, against the backdrop of a case filed against him by the Ministry of Minerals, and each time he was placed in custody and released on bail.
Regular forces also kidnapped photojournalist Marwan Negm, who works for the Al Jazeera Sudan platform, during media coverage in the Friendship Hall on February 21. He was beaten, and his phone, photography equipment, and sums of money in his possession were confiscated before he was released on the second day on bail.
Unidentified persons kidnapped journalist Ahmed Qasm Al-Sayed in front of his workplace at Al-Harak newspaper in Khartoum, in the middle of last March. After persistent attempts by the Journalists Syndicate, the place where he was detained was found, which was the State Security Prosecution. His phone was confiscated and he was forced to open it. After the Syndicate’s intervention, he was released on bail.
Charges were also brought against the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, Ruqaya Al-Zaki, and she was asked to come to the prosecution for investigation.
Arrest:
There are two types of arrests:
1/ Interception and arrest while performing journalistic duties:
Photojournalist Ibrahim Naqdallah was arrested while returning from covering a convoy in September 2022 in Khartoum by armed men in civilian clothes on the Al-Fatihab Bridge linking Khartoum and Omdurman. He was beaten before being taken to the Khartoum North Police Department. His phone and photography equipment were confiscated and three reports were filed against him under Article 77 of Public Nuisance. 69 inciting riots and 57 photographing military areas, even though the camera found in his possession was devoid of memory at the time he was arrested. The complainant continued to fail to attend the sessions, and they were postponed, and the case file was not closed.
Journalist Amira BB Othman was arrested in a convoy on Tuesday, September 13, 2022, and was detained in the federal offices
“Oh, radio supervisor, Hafiza Abdullah, by the authorities in the central state for a long time, until she performed in covering a prominent event in the city market, and she was forced into the police department and dealt with in a humiliating manner while they asked her to force her to write a pledge not to carry out the coverage, but she insisted on refusing to write a pledge.” Her freedom to exercise was limited, and she was released after hours of detention after protesters barricaded her and refused to open it until she was dismissed.
2/Raid and arrest from the place of residence or work:
Journalist Mohamed Al-Amin Oshik was unlawfully raided, arrested and detained by Port Sudan police in November 2022.
Other complaints were opened in Al-Sudani newspaper, and its editor-in-chief, journalist Attaf Ahmed Mukhtar, was taken to the Public Prosecution. Reports were also registered in a confrontation with the Information Prosecution.
For this reason, journalist Ali Abu Idris, editor-in-chief of the Min Etijhat website there, said that after he was tricked and lured by unknown people with the intention of defending them with a pressing matter that they wanted to reveal to the public, and they wanted to hand over to him the documents related to the case, they insisted on telephone requesting a meeting with him. He told them a place, but no one came. With a cart and with him. Two cybercrime detectives took him from his house, presenting a warrant in their possession, to those accused of cybercrimes, and they learned that there was an open report against him through the Comprehensive Swimming Bank.
note:
This case has two types of collective transgression, the use of influence in the press conference to not adhere to the measures of the law, and the complainant’s action to the judiciary, not in this case. Therefore, he lured the journalist into the most consequential of his charges, which is to reveal the truth, and then attempted to suppress them and cause their death.
Reports for supplication:
Journalist Ibrahim Naqdallah called to appear before the judge in (3) reports.
He called journalist Sabah Muhammad Adam to appear before the judge at the Cybercrimes Prosecution, number of reports (5).
Contact Mr. Abdul Rahman Al-Ajeb to appear before the judge at the Cybercrimes Prosecution in the number of reports (8).
I contacted journalist Ruqaya Al-Zaki, a member of the Council of Trade Unions, who edited Al-Harak newspaper, regarding reports of crimes at the Information Prosecution Office, crimes of the State Court, and the Criminal Court, and the number of reports she received reached (7).
Contact the official Noman Ghazali in the report responsible for media crimes.
Journalist Attaf Ahmed Mukhtar contacted the editor-in-chief of Al-Sudaniyya newspaper with (3) complaints against the journalist.
Suspension from work:
On Friday, Aya Al-Sabbagh was returned from work by the director of Al-Bayt Al-Sudanese Radio due to her hosting of their news on a variety talk show on the evening of Tuesday, September 6, 2022. The president spoke about the conference, where he declared what the radio announced as a talk about politics forbidden on the radio, and the journalist was suspended on Sunday, September 11, after clarifying it. She has not been returned to work.
Attacking and preventing coverage:
On Thursday, September 15, the North Kordofan State Police decided to expel the community, and they injured the student Mustafa Lorsha to achieve the completion of social responsibility projects organized by the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company at the government headquarters, and caused the departure of the two students from the work teams who were university graduates.
On October 10, a BBC Arabic team was prevented from carrying out a reporting mission by the Nile River due to infection. The team intended to conduct a report in the “Al-Mikaylab” and “Qandtu” areas. There was a lot of news about that, but the military force left them behind and forced them to endure.
Medical doctor Ikhlas Nimr was arrested by the police during field coverage and prevented from photographing and covering the press. Nicole has the power to deal with us.
The press coverage was carried out by 3 female journalists, namely Saif Jamea, Hafia Nour Al-Jadeed, Hafida Jumah, and Intisar Fadlallah, while they were covering part of the removal, as they operate in Khartoum, and the police forces stopped them from filming and covering the press.
The police forces seized journalist Saif Jamaa and seized his phone, forcing him to open it to delete the coverage images. When he asked, they took him and forced him to make copies in the police car. They asked him to tell the truth about him and take responsibility for him and threatened him with reports against him before his procedures were later terminated and caused this.
The former actress, Azza Ayra, was presented to Al-Ahmar by the governor via phone calls and text messages on the background, as there are complex files related to conflicting decisions in the state government, at the end of January 2023, when the Liberties Secretariat verified the incident, and according to estimates related to the elders and tribal complications of the case, the journalist preferred. Finally, to eliminate.
Therefore, the company, Safaa Al-Fahal, threatened her with a message via the Messenger application from a fake personal account, and the journalist resorted to filing a report with the Information Prosecution.
Travel ban:
On December 12, the Freedoms Secretariat completed the news of the ban on journalist Nahed Al-Baqir from traveling to Doha, and it was confirmed that the closure of the world’s editions was the reason for that, as a report was opened against her at the Information Prosecution by an official in the Sudanese Football Association against the background of articles published by journalist Nahed Al-Baqir concerning the federation’s mission. General football. (The Sudanese national team mission), which was headed by the aforementioned official.
months after the outbreak of war
From April 15 – September 11
This period was characterized by the acceleration of ships and their general increase at all levels in Khartoum State and the states of Sudan, which were affected by the cumulative war and a bloody conflict. In this context, media workers in Khartoum State were exposed to real threats after their homes were bombed or looted in the shadow of the mountains under the inferno and the acts of looting and looting that took place in the triangular capital. Journalists spoke about the new infections that claimed their lives and the lives of members of their families, and they were subjected to arrest, torture, and threats..
Assault and theft of personal property:
BBC correspondent in Khartoum, Mohamed Mohamed Othman, was beaten by armed forces soldiers while trying to cross the Al-Fatihab Bridge separating Omdurman and Khartoum and reach his workplace on Saturday, April 15.
A press crew affiliated with Al Jazeera, consisting of (4) journalists, was expelled in the Kalakla area while covering the effects of the war.
A number of journalists were arrested at focal points spread across the capital, and at least three cases of looting of phones were recorded in Omdurman and East Nile by armed men wearing Rapid Support uniforms, including journalist Salah Damba, who was looted and had to hide his journalistic identity due to the harassment that occurred to him. While trying to reach the city of Renk on the southern border of Sudan from Khartoum.
Journalist Fayez Abu Bakr was beaten and threatened with death by members of the Rapid Support Forces, and he was released without providing any first aid or medical assistance.
Journalist Muhammad Nour Al-Madina was attacked and beaten, along with his family members. Shots were fired at his car, and their mobile phones and sums of money in their possession were looted.
Journalist Issa Dafallah was assaulted, beaten, and his phone and sums of money were stolen by a group affiliated with Rapid Support in the Malja market in Nyala while he was working to document the shops that were looted and burned as a result of the fighting.
Journalist Ahmed Fadl, a member of the Syndicate Council, photojournalist Rashid Jbeil, and a number of members of the Awal family were beaten inside their place of residence after the place was stormed, their mobile phones were stolen, all their money and clothes were stolen, and journalist Ahmed Fadl’s private vehicle was stolen.
The car of Professor Faisal Muhammad Saleh, Minister of Information in the transitional government, was looted by the Rapid Support Forces.
Journalist Al-Amin Al-Sheikh was beaten by members of the police in Port Sudan. He tried to open a report against them, but the police refused to open the report despite obtaining permission from the prosecutor.
Journalist Ali Joudeh was assaulted by members of military intelligence in the city of El Obeid and detained for two hours.
Journalist Iman Abdel Baqi was attacked by unknown persons while she was covering the Rapid Support Forces press conference in Geneva, by beating her and trying to take her phone.
Journalist Khaled Saad was threatened and taken from the street by members of the Rapid Support Forces, and forced at gunpoint to open the door of his house, and after searching the house, he was beaten.
Journalist Afraa Fath al-Rahman’s vehicle was towed by a Rapid Support force and stolen from the Kadro area.
The attack on journalist Imad Al-Nadif by Rapid Support forces in early June.
Journalist Islam Abdel Rahman was attacked by an armed force from the Rapid Support Forces in his home in Abbasiya, Omdurman. He and his son were terrorized.
The house was looted, the furniture was broken, and the keys to his personal vehicle were taken from him at gunpoint and stolen. This is the second attack. Journalist Islam was previously attacked inside his home by a group armed with machetes.
The car of journalist Abdel Baqi Al-Dhafer was looted.
The second vehicle belonging to journalist Abdel Baqi Al-Dhafer was stolen.
Journalist Mohamed Nour El-Din, a Reuters photographer, was beaten by the Rapid Support Forces in his home in Halfaya, and after he was beaten, his car, work equipment, and home belongings were looted.
Attacks on headquarters and media institutions:
The General Authority for Radio and Television has been suspended from work and broadcasting since the fifteenth of last April. The series of taking it as a military barracks continues while the battles continue inside it, which poses a threat to the historical heritage it carries in its audio and video libraries. The union has continued to call on both sides of the conflict to withdraw and not to make the radio and television headquarters a battlefield, as they are civilian facilities and contain rare heritage.
There are reports of damage to the radio transmission station of Sudan Radio and Television. It should be noted that Omdurman Radio was recently broadcast from the city of Atbara, and Sudan TV was broadcast from the city of Port Sudan.
Attack on the Cooperative Corporation branch within the General Authority for Radio and Television.
The television safe at the General Authority for Radio and Television was broken and money was stolen.
Al-Jarida newspaper headquarters were attacked twice on Sunday and Monday, April 16 and 17.
The Al Sharq TV office came under fire.
The political movement newspaper was subjected to robbery, looting and vandalism.
Members of the Rapid Support Forces stormed the studios of Radio Hala 96 on Nile Street in Khartoum.
A Rapid Support force invaded the headquarters of Al-Midan newspaper in Khartoum 2, and the operation resulted in looting and vandalism of the newspaper’s headquarters and the destruction of its files, records, and equipment.
The perimeter of the building in which the offices of Al-Jazeera, Al-Arabiya, Al-Arabi and Al-Sharq channels are located, located on 60th Street in Khartoum, was subjected to artillery shelling, which threatened the safety of journalists and posed a danger to their lives, as a result of the bombing and the increased pace of battles in the vicinity of the building.
The media office of journalist Afra Abdel Rahman was attacked by Rapid Support forces and occupied with all television equipment and documents.
Attacking the headquarters of the electronic newspaper Iqtisai and looting all equipment, including television cameras, editing equipment, and presentation tools in the office in the Riyadh district of Khartoum, which is the area under the control of the Rapid Support.
The office of the Artkal Center of journalist Othman Fadlallah in central Khartoum was attacked and looted.
The headquarters of the political movement newspaper in Khartoum was stormed and its equipment was looted.
An armed force stormed the office of journalist Taher Al-Muatasem, a member of the union’s executive office, on May 11. The safe and personal computer were looted, and valuables were seized.
The office of journalist Mohieddin Jibril, located on the second floor in Khartoum, was attacked by three Rapid Support (Thatcher) four-wheel drive vehicles, and the looting of appliances, electrical equipment, and other possessions in the building.
The theft of journalist Omar Muhammad Adam’s audio recording studio equipment, which contains (an audio amplifier + a large stereo and headphone + a personal laptop +
wireless microphones).
Attacks on premises and media institutions:
The General Authority for Radio and Television has been suspended from work and broadcasting since the fifteenth of last April. The series of taking it as a military barracks continues while the battles continue inside it, which poses a threat to the historical heritage it carries in its audio and video libraries. The union has continued to call on both sides of the conflict to withdraw and not to make the radio and television headquarters a battlefield, as they are civilian facilities and contain rare heritage. There are reports of damage to the radio transmission station of Sudan Radio and Television. It should be noted that Omdurman Radio was recently broadcast from the city of Atbara, and Sudan TV was broadcast from the city of Port Sudan.
Attack on the Cooperative Corporation branch within the General Authority for Radio and Television.
The television safe at the General Authority for Radio and Television was broken and money was stolen.
Al-Jarida newspaper premises were attacked twice on Sunday and Monday, April 16 and 17.
The Al Sharq TV office came under fire.
The political movement newspaper was subjected to robbery, looting and vandalism.
Members of the Rapid Support Forces stormed the studios of Radio Hala 96 on Nile Street in Khartoum.
A Rapid Support force invaded the headquarters of Al-Midan newspaper in Khartoum 2, and the operation resulted in looting and vandalism of the newspaper’s headquarters and the destruction of its files, records, and equipment.
The perimeter of the building in which the offices of Al-Jazeera, Al-Arabiya, Al-Arabi and Al-Sharq channels are located, located on 60th Street in Khartoum, was subjected to artillery shelling, which threatened the safety of journalists and posed a danger to their lives, as a result of the bombing and the increased pace of battles in the vicinity of the building.
The media office of journalist Afra Abdel Rahman was attacked by Rapid Support forces and occupied with all television equipment and documents.
Attacking the headquarters of the electronic newspaper Iqtisai and looting all equipment, including television cameras, editing equipment, and presentation tools in the office in the Riyadh district of Khartoum, which is the area under the control of the Rapid Support.
The office of the Artkal Center of journalist Othman Fadlallah in central Khartoum was attacked and looted.
The headquarters of the political movement newspaper in Khartoum was stormed and its equipment was looted.
An armed force stormed the office of journalist Taher Al-Muatasem, a member of the union’s executive office, on May 11. The safe and personal computer were looted, and valuables were seized.
The office of journalist Mohieddin Jibril, located on the second floor in Khartoum, was attacked by three Rapid Support forces members on four-wheel drive vehicles, and the looting of appliances, electrical equipment, and other possessions in the building.
Theft of journalist Omar Mohamed Adam’s audio recording studio equipment, which contains (an audio mixer + a large stereo headphone + a personal laptop + wireless microphones), in addition to the seizure of the museum of gifts and personal armor that the journalist obtained throughout his career.
The work equipment of photojournalist Ahmed Al-Mustafa was looted by Rapid Support forces, including a camera and a live broadcast device from his house.
Radio Al-Danga, Voice of Peace, was occupied by the Rapid Support Forces and turned into a military barracks.
The headquarters of the “Tana” Media Production Company in Khartoum was occupied by the Rapid Support Forces, and pictures showed that the headquarters was being used for military purposes.
Assault on homes:
The house of Professor Ali Shamo, former Minister of Culture and Information, director of radio and television, and professor of media at Sudanese universities, was raided three times by the Rapid Support Forces, who expelled them from the house and carried out looting and theft of the house and cars in May.
The Journalists Syndicate warned in a statement of the seriousness of this, given that Professor Ali Shamo’s library contains a huge historical legacy represented by documents and photos that document important stages of the history of Sudan in general and the history of his media work, which constitutes an important asset for future generations.
Not a day goes by during the war without the homes of journalists being raided, looted, and property destroyed. The number of homes that were stormed and looted reached (71).
In May, (26) houses were attacked and their contents looted. They were the homes of Abdel Moneim Abu Idris, head of the Journalists Syndicate, Inaam Al-Nur Adam in the city of El Geneina, Ahmed Fadl in Khartoum Bahri, journalist and researcher Adel Ahmed Ibrahim, Siddiq Abdullah, Muhammad Amin Yassin, Ahmed Younis, Muhammad Azhari, Heba Abdel Qader Mahmoud, Muhammad Latif, and a member of the Executive Office. Taher Al-Muatasem, Othman Fadlallah, Awdiya Suleiman, Al-Jili Bashir, Israa Zein Al-Abidin, Wajdi Al-Kurdi, Mr. Moatasem Fadl, Shams Al-Din Al-Amin, Fatima Ali, Hafez Al-Khair, Rehab Omar, Somaya Sayed, and Hanan Al-Tayeb.
In June, (13) homes were attacked and robbed, including for journalists, member of the Executive Office, Noha Karrar, Mohieddin Jibril, and Nawal Shanan, and member of the Executive Office, Lubna Abdullah, Khaled Abdul Aziz, Khaled Owais, Alawiyah Mukhtar, Nazik Shamam, Hanadi Abdul Latif, Afra Fatah al-Rahman, Iman Habibullah, Muzdalifah Othman, and Noha. Younis Babari.
In July, 19 journalists’ homes were attacked and looted. They included Abd al-Rahman Farouk in the Treasury, Khaled al-Tijani, Alaa al-Din Moussa, and Sami al-Shennawi in the press, and a member of the executive office, Iman Fadl al-Sayyid Babri, Montaser Ahmed al-Nour, Ibtisam Kamal Babiri, Amal Shabo in al-Droshab, Omar Muhammad Adam, and Hajj Ahmed al-Mustafa. With the ten, and Badawi’s arrival in the city of El Geneina and her escape to the Chadian border, Aisha Al-Samani in the eastern Nile, Arafa Khawaja in the city of El Geneina, western Darfur, and her escape to the state of Chad, Yasser Abdullah in the Halfaya neighborhood in Bahri, the radio broadcaster Abdul Qayyum Ashmiq, Hamad Al-Taher, Ezz Al-Arab Muhammad Suleiman in the Arkowit neighborhood in Khartoum, Islam Abdul Rahman in the Abbasiya neighborhood in Bamdurman, and Hatem Al-Kanani in Burri.
In August, (13) homes of journalists were raided and looted. They included Mr. Omar Al-Jazli and Bahaa El-Din Issa, the journalist designer Mohamed Babiker in Al-Fatihab, a member of the Executive Office, Hanem Adam Bashambat in Bahri, a member of the Executive Office, Nidal Ajeeb, in Imtada Nasser, radio personality Magdy Ali Hassab Al-Daim in Ambada, Hatem Al-Kanani in Al-Droshab, and Mohamed Mohamedou in Bamdurman. And Samah Taha, Muhammad Nour El-Din, Amani Abu Fateen, and a member of the
The executive Hanim Adam, Shambat, in Bahri, and a member of the Executive Office, Nidal Ajeeb, with the extension of Nasser, the radio, Majdi Ali, according to the permanent in the permanent person, Hatem al -Kinani, Darwashb, Muhammad Muhammadu Bamdurman, Samah Taha, Muhammad Nur al -Din, Amani Abu Fateen, and member of the Executive Office Tariq Othman and Tariq Abu Shoura.
Sudanese Journalists Association
Freedom Secretariat
09/19/2023.