Court acquits treason suspect
Publish date: 22 July 2024
Issue Number: 1086
Diary: IBA Legalbrief Africa
Category: Sudan
The Atbara court in River Nile state has acquitted Aya Mustafa who was earlier sentenced to death for collaborating with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Radio Dabanga reports that defence lawyer Mohamed Hashim states that the conviction was based on an old video showing Mustafa in a paramilitary RSF uniform, which at the time was not illegal. The defence successfully appealed, presenting a memorandum that included a testimony from Mustafa's brother. He explained that the video was filmed before the war for harmless purposes, and that Mustafa had borrowed the uniform from neighbours. Hashim emphasised that ‘Mustafa is an ordinary citizen’, not affiliated with any military force, and had fled from Khartoum to the River Nile region to escape the conflict.