IMTITHAL
ABDELFADEEL

Background and Work

Imtithal Abdelfadeel works as a journalist for Aljareeda Alsudaia, a Sudanese daily newspaper. Her reporting focuses on the social and economic rights of internally displaced people, a population that has grown dramatically since the outbreak of armed conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces in April 2023. She is a member of the Sudanese Journalists Syndicate and among a small cohort of young female journalists working in Sudan on issues of women's rights and justice.

Sudan's press environment has deteriorated sharply since the 2021 military coup and the 2023 outbreak of hostilities. Many journalists have fled the country or ceased reporting. Those who remain face checkpoints, arbitrary detention, and restrictions on movement. Abdelfadeel's work on displacement and women's issues places her in a particularly exposed position in a militarised context where such reporting is treated as a threat.

The Arrest

On the morning of 19 April 2025, Abdelfadeel arrived at a bus station in Kassala to begin a journey to Port Sudan, intending to continue from there on a journalism assignment abroad arranged by her employer. At approximately 5:00 a.m., military officers arrested her. They blindfolded her and confiscated her mobile phone.

The arrest occurred hours before her scheduled departure, and authorities appear to have known her travel plans in advance. The timing and circumstances suggest the detention was designed not only to prevent her from leaving but to disrupt her reporting assignment.

Detention and Coercion

Abdelfadeel was held at a detention facility in Kassala State for three days. During that time, she was held incommunicado and subjected to interrogation. She had no access to family members or legal counsel. Authorities provided no formal charge or legal basis for her detention.

On 22 April 2025, she was released after being coerced into signing an agreement under duress. The document imposed an arbitrary travel ban that prohibits her from leaving Kassala State or Sudan. No judicial authority reviewed or authorised the terms of the ban. She was compelled to sign as a condition of her release.

Ongoing Restrictions

Since her release, Abdelfadeel remains under surveillance by state authorities. The travel ban prevents her from undertaking journalism assignments outside Kassala, effectively limiting her ability to report and earn a living. The restrictions remain in force without legal review or any stated expiry date.

The ban is part of a broader pattern in Sudan in which journalists and human rights defenders are subjected to arbitrary movement restrictions, interrogation, and harassment designed to silence reporting on abuses committed during the ongoing armed conflict.

International Response

Human rights organisations have called for the immediate lifting of all restrictions on Abdelfadeel's movement and an end to surveillance and harassment. No government authority has provided a legal justification for her detention or the travel ban she was forced to accept. The case remains unresolved.