Abubakr Mansour Abdela

Background and Work

Abubakr Mansour Abdela is a lawyer who has provided legal assistance and representation to members of his community in Sudan for many years. His practice has been marked by a long-standing resistance to the Islamic Movement, the political-religious network that controlled much of Sudan's governance and security apparatus from 1989 until the 2019 revolution and which has retained influence within factions of the military.

When armed conflict erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in April 2023, Abdela chose to remain in his hometown rather than flee. He continued his legal work while also organising humanitarian support. He distributed free medicine obtained from his brother's pharmaceutical company to community members who had lost access to medical care as the health system collapsed under the pressure of war.

Abdela has been publicly opposed to the war and has not aligned himself with either of the warring parties. His work during the conflict focused on providing immediate relief and legal counsel to civilians caught between the two armed forces.

The First Conviction

On 30 April 2025, the Singa General Court convicted Abdela and sentenced him to twenty years in prison, along with a fine of ten million Sudanese pounds. The charges related to alleged collaboration with the Rapid Support Forces. His legal team rejected the conviction and lodged an appeal, arguing that the proceedings had failed to meet basic standards of fairness and that the evidence presented did not support the charges.

The Death Sentence

On 5 October 2025, the Singa Criminal Court sentenced Abubakr Mansour Abdela to death by hanging. The court convicted him under Articles 50 and 51 of the Sudan Criminal Act 1991, which criminalise offences against the state and waging war against the state. The court issued no public explanation for the decision.

According to observers who followed the proceedings, the ruling raised serious concerns about the integrity of the trial process, the evaluation of evidence, and compliance with both Sudanese and international fair-trial standards. The facts and testimonies presented during the hearings did not appear to substantiate the allegations of armed collaboration with the RSF.

Four days before the verdict was announced, on 1 October 2025, authorities arrested Abubakr Elmahi, the lawyer representing Abdela. The arrest effectively deprived Abdela of legal representation at the moment the court was preparing to issue its final judgment.

Context of Repression Against Lawyers

Since the outbreak of war in April 2023, human rights lawyers in Sudan have faced systematic targeting by both the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces. Lawyers have been arbitrarily detained, forcibly disappeared, tortured, and killed. Members of the Darfur Bar Association, including Mohammed Ahmed Kudia, Khamis Arabab, Tareg Hassan Yagoub Elmalik, and El Sadeg Mohammed Ahmed Haroun, have been killed in circumstances suggesting they were targeted because of their legal and human rights work.

The conviction and sentencing of Abdela appears to form part of this broader pattern of judicial harassment and persecution of legal professionals who have provided assistance to civilians during the war or who have been perceived as politically opposed to one or both of the armed factions.

Legal Proceedings and International Response

Abdela's legal team is appealing the death sentence. The appeal challenges the procedural integrity of the trial, the sufficiency and reliability of the evidence, and the proportionality of the sentence. International human rights organisations have condemned the verdict as politically motivated retaliation and called for the sentence to be overturned and for Abdela to be released.