Activist detained without charge in Sudan’s Blue Nile state

October 9, 2025 (ED DAMAZIN) – An activist in Sudan’s Blue Nile state has been held without charge since last Saturday after being summoned by a joint security force, a local emergency response group said on Thursday.

The activist, Nader Minalla Mahmoud, was taken into custody by the Security Cell, a body composed of the army, police, and intelligence services that holds broad powers of arrest and investigation.

“The continued detention… without charge, is a clear violation of his legal and human rights,” a member of the Blue Nile Emergency Room told Sudan Tribune, speaking on condition of anonymity due to security concerns.

The group demanded Mahmoud’s immediate and unconditional release and said it holds the authorities fully responsible for his physical and psychological safety.

In a statement, the emergency room group called the detention of humanitarian and rights workers a “dangerous targeting of civil society’s efforts” that undermines justice and freedom. It urged civil and rights organisations to “raise their voices in solidarity with Nader and all those arbitrarily detained.”

The Security Cell has detained hundreds of people in army-controlled areas, including Khartoum, Port Sudan, and the states of River Nile, Gezira, Northern, and Blue Nile. Authorities often hold individuals on suspicion of collaborating with the rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

While some of those detained are sent to trial, others are released during the investigation, and courts have previously acquitted several people who faced charges of collaborating with the RSF.