New York, May 28, 2025— The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Sudanese authorities to immediately release journalist and blogger Abduljalil Mohamed Abduljalil, who was arrested on Sunday by security forces affiliated with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), and to stop arbitrarily arresting journalists for their reporting.
“The abduction-like arrest of blogger and veteran journalist Abduljalil Mohamed Abduljalil over his reporting on alleged corruption on his Facebook page is a clear example of how journalists are targeted in Sudan,” said Sara Qudah, CPJ’s regional director. “Authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Abduljalil, guarantee his safety, and stop targeting journalists for their work.”
On May 25, SAF security forces stormed Abduljalil’s home in the eastern city of Kassala, arrested him, without a warrant, and barred him from notifying his family, changing his clothes, and packing medicine for his many health conditions, according to a statement by the Sudanese Journalists Syndicate and news reports. He was held incommunicado for hours before his family received confirmation of his arrest later that night.
Abduljalil was arrested in connection to his posts critical of the government, especially those alleging corruption in the pilgrimage authority, a government body that oversees and organizes travel, logistics, and permits for Muslims traveling to Saudi Arabia to perform the pilgrimage, according to those sources, and a local journalist who is following the case and spoke with CPJ on the condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisal. Abduljalil’s Facebook posts regarding the pilgrimage authority has since been removed.
The journalists’ union condemned Abduljalil’s arrest as an act of enforced disappearance and a dangerous escalation in targeting Sudanese journalists, and it called for an immediate investigation into the incident.
Abduljalil, a blogger with 29,000 followers on his Facebook page and a former sports correspondent for Sudan Radio, is considered one of Kassala’s most prominent journalists. He regularly provides political commentary to local newspapers. His arrest comes amid rising public anger in Kassala over electricity and water cuts.
In a separate incident on May 10, SAF security forces arrested freelance journalist Mounir Al-Taraiki from his home in the Northern Sudan state and detained him for two days without charge.
Ever since the war between the SAF and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces broke out in Sudan in April 2023, CPJ has documented dozens of violations against the press, including arbitrary arrests, assaults, and the killing of at least 14 journalists and media workers.
CPJ’s email to SAF about Abduljalil and Al-Taraiki’s arrests received no reply.
Editor’s note: The quote from CPJ in this alert has been updated.