Nyala, April 27 (Darfur24)
A Special Emergency Court operating under the Sudanese Founding Alliance government has begun trying individuals accused of spying for the Sudanese army, marking the start of formal judicial proceedings by the RSF-aligned administration in Nyala.
Footage broadcast by the “Central Darfur Digital” platform and verified by Darfur24 shows the first trial session held in South Darfur’s capital, with defendants appearing before a judge inside a courtroom bearing official state insignia.
In the video, Judge Tariq Mahmoud Ibrahim Ishaq identified himself as a judge of the Special Emergency Court, assigned to hear the cases brought before him. He announced that the first case, registered as Report No. 1, involves defendant Al-Tayeb Al-Sayed Yahya Abdel-Ghani, following a complaint filed by Al-Taher Hamdan.
The session was attended by Lieutenant Azraq Saeed, representing the RSF’s legal advisory arm within its intelligence department on private rights, and Maulana Adam Ibrahim Abdullah, acting as deputy prosecutor on behalf of the Attorney General in public rights, along with investigator Othman Tawwal Ibrahim.
Three defendants were presented during the session, in the presence of police officers and a number of lawyers, according to the footage.
Since the outbreak of war in Sudan in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), both sides have detained large numbers of civilians on accusations of espionage and collaboration.
Courts affiliated with the Sudanese army have previously issued harsh sentences against civilians on similar charges, including the death penalty, life imprisonment, and prison terms of varying lengths.
The RSF is also holding thousands of detainees at Daqris prison west of Nyala on comparable charges, with hundreds reportedly transferred there from Khartoum in recent months.