Sudanese journalist Muammar Ibrahim has been detained by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) as they advanced in el-Fasher, raising concerns about his safety and prompting calls for his release.
The RSF detained the reporter on Sunday evening, hours after the paramilitary force claimed it had seized control of the besieged capital of North Darfur.
The RSF has been laying siege to el-Fasher for nearly 18 months in a bid to take control of the Sudanese army’s last stronghold in the vast western region of Darfur.
Several videos have been distributed of the captured journalist, a freelancer who contributed to Al Jazeera Mubasher.
In one, Ibrahim says he was detained as he tried to leave el-Fasher and that he was being held by the RSF.
He is seen surrounded by RSF fighters who jostle to appear and comment in the video. One masked fighter is seen off to one side.
Ibrahim declares he is a neutral journalist, with loyalties to neither the Sudanese army nor the RSF.
Another video shows Ibrahim crouching on the ground, encircled by RSF fighters who prompt him to speak of being well-treated.
At one point, they cuff him on the head and point at some meat being cut up to one side, remarking: “You’ve been eating ambaaz [animal feed] and now you’ll get a meal with meat.”
In a statement on Sunday night, the Sudanese Journalists Syndicate expressed “its deep concern over the arrest”, adding that it holds the RSF fully responsible for his safety and demands his “immediate and unconditional release”.
Ibrahim had reported from el-Fasher over the past two years of war in Sudan, providing updates on the living conditions and developments on the ground as the city suffered under the siege. During that time, severe hunger has stalked the city.
Ibrahim’s latest post on social media early on Sunday morning read: “#el-Fasher, may God keep its people… pray for us”.
According to the latest data from the International Organization for Migration, 1,070 people were displaced from el-Fasher in just two days, between October 19 and 21, as a result of the fighting.
Translation: #el-Fasher, may God keep its people… pray for us.
