Reuters said in an emailed statement that “we are actively seeking additional information about the situation.” In its news story on the arrests, Reuters did not identify Mr. Abdelaziz by name and described him as a stringer, a term that refers to a local journalist who works for a news organization that is based elsewhere.

The Agence France-Presse bureau chief in Khartoum, Jay Deshmukh, said in an email that Sudanese authorities had informed the agency that the journalists were in a detention center in Khartoum run by the National Intelligence and Security Service.

“We have no information as to when they might be released,” he said.

The detentions of the journalists got the attention of the Trump administration, which has been slowly moving to improve relations with Sudan but has expressed concern about its history of rights abuses. Sudan is still listed on the State Department’s state sponsor of terrorism blacklist, where it has been since 1993.

“We condemn the harassment, arbitrary detention, and attacks on journalists in Sudan who are doing their jobs and exercising their fundamental right to freedom of expression,” Heather Nauert, a State Department spokeswoman, said in a statement. “We remain deeply concerned about freedom of expression, including for members of the media, the closing of political space for all Sudanese, and Sudan’s poor overall human rights record.”

Sudan government representatives in Khartoum did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the detentions. Mekki Elmograbi, the press attaché at Sudan’s embassy in Washington, said he had no information about the arrests.

Sherif Mansour, the Middle East and North Africa program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists, said in a phone interview that Sudan’s press repression had grown increasingly harsh.

He attributed the change partly to examples set by other authoritarian leaders, including Egypt’s president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, whose government has harassed and intimidated many journalists to stifle dissident voices.

“They look at Egypt and other countries in the neighborhood, and they have passed aggressive measures and gotten away with it,” Mr. Mansour said. “They suppress popular dissent and go after anyone who tries to present it.”</s>Authorities in Sudan were holding an Agence France-Presse journalist on Thursday after he was arrested a day earlier while covering demonstrations against rising food prices that were dispersed by police.

Abdelmoneim Abu Idris Ali, a 51-year-old who has worked for AFP in Khartoum for nearly a decade, was covering the protests on Wednesday in the Sudanese capital’s twin city of Omdurman, where riot police fired tear gas on some 200 protesters

Idris Ali was unreachable after the protest and authorities informed AFP on Thursday that he had been arrested along with two other journalists, including one working for international news agency Reuters, and was being held at a detention center run by Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS).

Authorities initially said Idris Ali would be released within hours but as of late Thursday, more than 24 hours after he was detained, the reporter was still being held.

Authorities said the three journalists “are being investigated” but provided no further details.

“AFP management strongly condemns the arrest of Mr. Idris Ali and asks Sudanese authorities for his immediate release,” the agency said.

Several protesters were also reported to have been detained at the demonstration.

Sporadic protests have erupted across Sudan after prices of food items, but mainly bread, surged following a jump in the cost of flour due to a shortage of wheat supplies.

Wednesday’s rally was called by the main opposition Umma Party, a day after a similar demonstration was held near the presidential palace in Khartoum following a call issued by the Communist Party. Tuesday’s protest was also broken up by police.

Similar protests were held in late 2016 after the government cut fuel subsidies.

The authorities cracked down on those protests to prevent a repeat of deadly unrest that followed an earlier round of subsidy cuts in 2013.

Rights groups said dozens of people were killed when security forces crushed the 2013 demonstrations, drawing international condemnation.

Critics have repeatedly accused President Omar al-Bashir’s regime of cracking down on the media in Sudan, with watchdog Reporters Without Borders ranking the country 174th out of 180 countries in its 2017 World Press Freedom Index.</s>At least 27 people have been killed in protests in Khartoum over fuel subsidy cuts as another bout of the worst unrest seen in Sudan's relatively well-off central regions for years broke out in its biggest port, September 25, 2013. — Reuters picKHARTOUM, Jan 19 — Journalists working for Agence France-Presse and Reuters were among three reporters being held by Sudanese authorities yesterday a day after they were arrested covering demonstrations against rising food prices that were dispersed by police.

Abdelmoneim Abu Idris Ali, a 51-year-old who has worked for AFP in Khartoum for nearly a decade, was covering the protests on Wednesday in the Sudanese capital’s twin city of Omdurman, where riot police fired tear gas on some 200 protesters.

Idris Ali was unreachable after the protest and authorities informed AFP yesterday that he had been arrested along with two other journalists, including one working for Reuters, and was being held at a detention centre run by Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS).

Authorities initially said Idris Ali would be released within hours but as of late last night, more than 24 hours after he was detained, he was still being held.

Authorities said the three journalists “are being investigated” but provided no further details.

“AFP management strongly condemns the arrest of Mr Idris Ali and asks Sudanese authorities for his immediate release,” the agency said.

Reuters did not name their detained reporter who they said was a stringer — a term used to describe people who work for media outlets part time or on short term assignments when news breaks.

The agency said they had last heard from their reporter just before they left to cover the protests.

“We do not know the circumstances of the detention and are actively seeking additional information about the situation,” a Reuters spokesperson said in their dispatch on the arrests.

Several protesters were also reported to have been detained at the demonstration.

Sporadic protests have erupted across Sudan after prices of food items, but mainly bread, surged following a jump in the cost of flour due to a shortage of wheat supplies.

Wednesday’s rally was called by the main opposition Umma Party, a day after a similar demonstration was held near the presidential palace in Khartoum following a call issued by the Communist Party. Tuesday’s protest was also broken up by police.

Similar protests were held in late 2016 after the government cut fuel subsidies.

The authorities cracked down on those protests to prevent a repeat of deadly unrest that followed an earlier round of subsidy cuts in 2013.

Rights groups said dozens of people were killed when security forces crushed the 2013 demonstrations, drawing international condemnation.

Critics have repeatedly accused President Omar al-Bashir’s regime of cracking down on the media in Sudan, with watchdog Reporters Without Borders ranking the country 174th out of 180 countries in its 2017 World Press Freedom Index. — AFP</s>Journalists covering recent clashes between police and demonstrators in Khartoum have been detained

Sudanese journalists in Khartoum in November protest against proposed new law that aims to tighten restrictions on media freedom (AFP)

Sudanese authorities detained a Reuters stringer and an AFP reporter who were covering protests in the capital Khartoum, the external information council, which deals with foreign media organisations, said on Thursday.

Reuters last had contact with its stringer early on Wednesday before he went to report on the demonstrations, which resulted in clashes between police and protesters.

Protests broke out across Sudan early this month after Khartoum imposed tough economic measures in line with recommendations by the International Monetary Fund.

An official in the external information council, contacted by Reuters, did not say whether charges would be brought against the two Sudanese journalists. The official had earlier said they would be released on Thursday.

"We do not know the circumstances of the detention and are actively seeking additional information about the situation," a Reuters spokesperson said.

AFP confirmed the detention of one of its journalists. In an article, the news agency said its management strongly condemned the arrest and asked for his immediate release.

Abdelmoneim Abu Idris Ali, a 51-year-old who has worked for AFP in Khartoum for almost a decade, was covering the protests on Wednesday in the Sudanese capital's twin city of Omdurman, where riot police fired tear gas on about 200 protesters.

Idris Ali was unreachable after the protest and authorities informed AFP on Thursday that he had been arrested along with two other journalists, including one working for international news agency Reuters, and was being held at a detention centre run by Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS).

Sudanese officials initially said Idris Ali would be released within hours but as of late Thursday, more than 24 hours after he was detained, he was still being held.

Authorities said the three journalists "are being investigated" but provided no further details.

"AFP management strongly condemns the arrest of Mr. Idris Ali and asks Sudanese authorities for his immediate release," the agency said.

Several protesters were also reported to have been detained at the demonstration.

In addition, Sudanese authorities arrested several reporters working for local Sudanese outlets over their coverage of the protests, according to a statement by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

CPJ condemned the arrests, saying: “Sudanese authorities should cease harassing and arresting journalists”.

"By arresting and intimidating journalists, confiscating newspapers and attempting to censor news dissemination, the Sudanese authorities keep trying to get journalists to stick to the official narrative or pay the price," CPJ Middle East and North Africa program coordinator Sherif Mansour said in the statement.

"We call on the authorities to release the seven journalists immediately and allow the press to do its job."</s>File: The Sudanese Journalists Network said copies of newspapers were seized and journalists were arrested earlier this week while reporting on anti-inflation protests in Khartoum. Photo: Martin Bureau /AFP/Getty Images

JOHANNESBURG – Authorities in Sudan have seized copies of newspapers and arrested several reporters over articles on “anti-inflation protests” prompting calls from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) against the harassment.

“Sudanese authorities should cease harassing and arresting journalists and confiscating newspapers, and should allow journalists to report on matters of public interest without fear of reprisal,” the CPJ said on Friday.

The Sudanese Journalists Network (SJN) said on Tuesday and Wednesday Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) arrested seven journalists while they were reporting on anti-inflation protests in Khartoum.

Reporters from privately owned newspapers Magdi al-Ajib of al-Watan, Rishan Oushi (Mijhar al-Siyasi), Imtenan Al-Radi (al-Youm al-Tali), and freelance journalist Amal Habani were arrested on 16 January.

The next day, Shawky Abdelazim, al-Youm al-Tali editor, Khalid Abdelaziz, Reuters’ Sudan correspondent, and Abdelmunim Abudris, AFP’s correspondent, were arrested.

They all remain in custody.

A spokesperson for SJN, who does not want to be named said family members of the arrested journalists did not know their whereabouts or if they were facing any charges.

NISS agents also confiscated at least three newspapers multiple times this week over critical coverage of the protests, according to news reports.

“By arresting and intimidating journalists, confiscating newspapers and attempting to censor news dissemination, the Sudanese authorities keep trying to get journalists to stick to the official narrative or pay the price,” CPJ Middle East and North Africa program coordinator Sherif Mansour said.

“We call on the authorities to release the seven journalists immediately and allow the press to do its job.”</s>The Committee to Protect Journalists, a press advocacy organization based in New York, criticized Sudan authorities in a statement, saying they should “cease harassing and arresting journalists and confiscating newspapers, and should allow journalists to report on matters of public interest without fear of reprisal.”

The committee said the Reuters reporter, identified as Khalid Abdelaziz; the Agence France-Presse reporter, Abdelmunim Abudris; and Ahawky Abdelazim, an editor of a Sudanese newspaper, were arrested on Wednesday. It said four others, arrested Tuesday, included a freelance journalist, Amal Habani, and three reporters, Magdi al-Ajib, Rishan Oushi and Imtenan Al-Radi, who worked for privately owned local newspapers.

For Reuters, one of the world’s largest news agencies, Sudan was the second country in the past month in which its journalists had been seized by the government for doing their jobs. Two Reuters reporters were arrested in December in Myanmar while reporting on the persecution of that country’s Rohingya minority.

Officials at Reuters and Agence France-Presse said Friday that the Sudanese government had not been forthcoming on why the journalists were arrested or what laws, if any, they may have violated.

Reuters said in an emailed statement that “we are actively seeking additional information about the situation.” In its news story on the arrests, Reuters did not identify Mr. Abdelaziz by name and described him as a stringer, a term that refers to a local journalist who works for a news organization that is based elsewhere.

The Agence France-Presse bureau chief in Khartoum, Jay Deshmukh, said in an email that Sudanese authorities had informed the agency that the journalists were in a detention center in Khartoum run by the National Intelligence and Security Service.

“We have no information as to when they might be released,” he said.

The detentions of the journalists got the attention of the Trump administration, which has been slowly moving to improve relations with Sudan but has expressed concern about its history of rights abuses. Sudan is still listed on the State Department’s state sponsor of terrorism blacklist, where it has been since 1993.

“We condemn the harassment, arbitrary detention, and attacks on journalists in Sudan who are doing their jobs and exercising their fundamental right to freedom of expression,” Heather Nauert, a State Department spokeswoman, said in a statement. “We remain deeply concerned about freedom of expression, including for members of the media, the closing of political space for all Sudanese, and Sudan’s poor overall human rights record.”

Sudan government representatives in Khartoum did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the detentions. Mekki Elmograbi, the press attaché at Sudan’s embassy in Washington, said he had no information about the arrests.

Sherif Mansour, the Middle East and North Africa program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists, said in a phone interview that Sudan’s press repression had grown increasingly harsh.

He attributed the change partly to examples set by other authoritarian leaders, including Egypt’s president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, whose government has harassed and intimidated many journalists to stifle dissident voices.

“They look at Egypt and other countries in the neighborhood, and they have passed aggressive measures and gotten away with it,” Mr. Mansour said. “They suppress popular dissent and go after anyone who tries to present it.”</s>US condemns arrests of AFP reporter, others at Sudan demo

Washington, United States | AFP | The United States condemned Sudan’s arbitrary detention of journalists Friday after an AFP reporter and two colleagues were arrested covering a street protest.

Abdelmoneim Abu Idris Ali of Agence France-Presse and at least two more journalists were taken away by authorities on Wednesday as they reported on a demonstration against rising food prices.

They have not been allowed contact with their families or employers and authorities say they are being held “for investigation” by Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS).

“We are aware of the detentions and are closely following the reports,” US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told AFP.

“We condemn the harassment, arbitrary detention and attacks on journalists in Sudan who are doing their jobs and exercising their fundamental right to freedom of expression.”

The United States has had difficult relations with Sudan, on which it once imposed several economic sanctions regimes over its alleged support for terrorism and brutality against the people of Darfur.

But last year US officials removed the last of the sanctions as part of a deliberate diplomatic engagement process.

Concerns remain, however, about the regime of Omar al-Bashir, who is under indictment by the International Criminal Court accused of ordering mass killings, rape and torture in the Darfur region.

“We remain deeply concerned about freedom of expression, including for members of the media, the closing of political space for all Sudanese, and Sudan’s poor overall human rights record,” Nauert said.

“We continue to press Sudan to improve its performance in these areas, and to ensure that those detained are treated humanely and fairly… and that they are allowed access to legal counsel and their families.”

Idris Ali, a 51-year-old who has worked for AFP for nearly a decade, was covering protests Wednesday in the city of Omdurman, where riot police fired tear gas at some 200 protesters.

He was unreachable after the protest and authorities informed AFP the next day that he had been arrested along with two other journalists.

Authorities initially said Idris Ali would be released within hours but as of late Friday, more than 48 hours after he was detained, he was still being held.

“AFP management strongly condemns the arrest of Mr. Idris Ali and asks Sudanese authorities for his immediate release,” the agency said.

Several protesters were also reported to have been detained at the demonstration.

Sporadic protests have erupted across Sudan after prices of food, notably bread, surged following a jump in the cost of flour due to a shortage of wheat.

Wednesday’s rally was called by the main opposition Umma Party, a day after a similar demonstration organized by the Communist Party in Khartoum was broken up by police.

Authorities cracked down on similar protests in 2016, and rights groups say dozens were killed by security forces in 2013 protests.

Critics have long accused Khartoum of persecuting the media, with watchdog Reporters Without Borders ranking the country 174th out of 180 countries in its 2017 World Press Freedom Index.</s>The United States has condemned Sudan’s arbitrary detention of journalists after reporters from the French news agency (AFP) and Reuters were arrested covering a street protest Friday.

The U.S. State Department said it was aware of the detentions and was closely following the reports.

“We condemn the harassment, arbitrary detention, and attacks on journalists in Sudan who are doing their jobs and exercising their fundamental right to freedom of expression,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement.

The U.S. is continuing to press Sudan to improve its performance regarding freedom of expression and overall human rights and “to ensure that those detained are treated humanely and fairly, in accordance with Sudanese law and international human rights standards, and that they are allowed access to legal counsel and their families,” Nauert said.

Widespread protests and clashes with security forces erupted in Sudan this month after Khartoum imposed tough economic measures in line with recommendations by the International Monetary Fund.

Abdelmoneim Abu Idris Ali, 51, of AFP and at least two other journalists, one a Reuters Sudanese stringer, were taken away by authorities Wednesday as they reported on a demonstration against rising food prices.

They are being held in a detention center “for investigation” by Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), Sudanese authorities are quoted by both news agencies as saying, and have not been allowed any contacts with their families or employers.

AFP said its management strongly condemned the arrest of Idris Ali and asked for his immediate release.

Reuters said it did not know the circumstances of the detention and was actively seeking additional information about the situation.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said in a statement Thursday that a total of seven journalists working in Sudan had been arrested, and it called for the immediate release of all the reporters.

“By arresting and intimidating journalists, confiscating newspapers and attempting to censor news dissemination, the Sudanese authorities keep trying to get journalists to stick to the official narrative or pay the price,” CPJ Middle East and North Africa program coordinator Sherif Mansour said.

Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans Frontières, RSF) ranked Sudan the 174th worst out of 180 countries in its 2017 World Press Freedom Index. Critics have accused President Omar al-Bashir’s regime of cracking down on the media.</s>Sudanese authorities have detained a Reuters stringer and an AFP reporter who were covering protests in the capital Khartoum, the country’s external information council, which deals with foreign media organizations, said.

Reuters last had contact with its stringer early on Wednesday before he went to report on the demonstrations which resulted in clashes between police and protesters. Sudan has seen a wave of unrest over soaring living costs.

An official in the external information council, contacted by Reuters, did not say whether charges would be brought against the two Sudanese journalists. The official had earlier said they would be released early on Thursday.

“We do not know the circumstances of the detention and are actively seeking additional information about the situation,” a Reuters spokesperson said.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said five local journalists had also been arrested and called for the immediate release of all the reporters.

“By arresting and intimidating journalists, confiscating newspapers and attempting to censor news dissemination, the Sudanese authorities keep trying to get journalists to stick to the official narrative or pay the price,” CPJ Middle East and North Africa program coordinator Sherif Mansour said in a statement.

The Sudanese authorities arrested the journalists while they were reporting on demonstrations in Khartoum, according to the statement, which cited news reports and the independent Sudanese Journalists Network.

The Sudanese official declined to comment on the CPJ report.

The U.S. State Department said it was aware of the detentions and was closely following the reports.

“We condemn the harassment, arbitrary detention, and attacks on journalists in Sudan who are doing their jobs and exercising their fundamental right to freedom of expression,” State Department spokewoman Heather Nauert said in a statement.

AFP confirmed the detention of one of its journalists. In an article, the news agency said its management strongly condemned the arrest and asked for his immediate release.

Protests and clashes with security forces broke out across Sudan this month after Khartoum imposed tough economic measures in line with recommendations by the International Monetary Fund.</s>CAIRO: Sudanese authorities have detained a Reuters stringer and an AFP reporter who were covering protests in the capital Khartoum, the external information council, which deals with foreign media organisations, said.

Reuters last had contact with its stringer early on Wednesday before he went to report on the demonstrations, which resulted in clashes between police and protesters.

An official in the external information council, contacted by Reuters, did not say whether charges would be brought against the two Sudanese journalists. The official had earlier said they would be released early on Thursday.

"We do not know the circumstances of the detention and are actively seeking additional information about the situation," a Reuters spokesperson said.

AFP confirmed the detention of one of its journalists. In an article, the news agency said its management strongly condemned the arrest and asked for his immediate release.

Protests and clashes with security forces broke out across Sudan early this month after Khartoum imposed tough economic measures in line with recommendations by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Service arrests 7 journalists who were covering this week's economic protests in Khartoum. The charges are unclear.