Sudanese security suspends weekly newspaper indefinitely

July 1, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) on Wednesday has suspended Elaph business weekly newspaper indefinitely, said Chief-Editor.

The publisher and editor-in-chief of the newspaper, Khalid Al-Tigani Al-Nour, said on his Facebook page that the printing house received a letter from NISS instructing them not to print the newspaper until further notice without giving reasons.

The Chief-Editor pointed out that the newspaper has not been officially notified of the move but he later underscored that NISS suspended his newspaper until further notice.
Al-Nour, a famous Islamist figure, has been known for his harsh criticism for the government particularly regarding its economic policies.

NISS on Tuesday seized print runs of al-Siyasi newspaper from the printing house for mentioning the issue of the college students who ran off to join the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

It also seized copies of al-Jareeda and al-Tayar newspapers on Monday for publishing stories which stated that the daughter of the foreign ministry spokesperson Ali al-Sadig was among the students who joined ISIS.

NISS recently intensified its crackdown on press in the country accusing them of crossing the red lines through publishing reports which adversely impact the national security.

On 25 May, it seized copies of 10 newspapers from the printing press without giving reasons. In a similar move last February, it also seized print runs of fourteen newspapers.

Journalists say that NISS uses seizures of print copies of newspapers, not only to censor the media but also to weaken them economically.

(ST)