Sudanese opposition leader Sadiq al-Mahdi was arrested on 17 May on charges that could lead to the death penalty, a government official said, a move that could hurt efforts to ease political tensions before elections due next year. Al-Mahdi, a former prime minister in Sudan’s last elected civilian government, is the head of the Umma Party, the most prominent party opposing President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, who ousted him in 1989. The public prosecutor had in the past days already opened an investigation into accusations that he insulted state security forces over a surge in violence in the troubled Darfur region.
SUDAN ARRESTS OPPOSITION LEADER AL-MAHDI
Sudanese opposition leader Sadiq al-Mahdi was arrested on 17 May on charges that could lead to the death penalty, a government official said, a move that could hurt efforts to ease political tensions before elections due next year.
