Sudanese security seizes Akhir Lahaza newspaper

June 17, 2017 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) on Saturday has confiscated copies of Akhir Lahza newspaper from the printing house stating reasons.

The managing editor of Akhir Lahza, Luay Abdel-Rahman, told Sudan Tribune that the NISS agents didn’t inform the newspaper of the reasons behind the seizure.

However, Abdel-Rahman said the move was likely driven by a column written by Abdallh al-Shaikh in which he criticised statements made by the First Vice-President and Prime Minister Bakri Hassan Salih on press freedoms.

Meanwhile, Sudan Tribune has learnt that the NISS verbally instructed the chief editors of Khartoum’s newspapers not to publish any reports or opinion articles on President Omer al-Bashir’s recent decision to sack his office director Taha Osman al-Hussein.

The NISS routinely confiscates newspapers either to prevent circulation of certain stories or to punish them retroactively on previous issues.

It accuses the newspapers of crossing the red lines through publishing reports which adversely impact on national security.

In February 2015, NISS seized entire print runs of 14 newspapers in one day without stating the reasons for its decision.

According to the non-governmental Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) network, the NISS confiscated newspapers 66 times from May 3, 2016, to May 3, 2017.

(ST)