HUDO Centre Date: 12th January 2021 No. H.K/PS/03/021 UPDATE ON ARREST OF CIVILIANS BY MILITARY IN TALODI, SUDAN Since 18th December 2020 when Mr. Taj-Elsir Abdalla Mesaibeil and Mr. Hussein Ibrahim AbuJarra were arrested by SAF/ MI in Talodi, they have been held incommunicado. This raised fear that they could be undergoing torture. Mr. Taj-Elsir Abdalla Mesaibeil and Mr. Hussein Ibrahim Abu-Jarra were arrested by Four (4) armed soldiers of Sudan Armed Force (SAF) on 18th December 2020 in Talodi. Since then, they have been kept incommunicado in Military Intelligence (MI) custody at Talodi military base. They are denied visits from relatives or lawyers and are detained in very bad conditions. This raised the fear that they could be undergoing torture. It’s presumed that the reason for their arrest is because they were coming from the area controlled by Sudan People Liberation Army – North (SPLA-N) to the government controlled territory/ area. HUDO is very concerned about the situation of civilians in conflict areas. HUDO calls upon:  The military authority in Talodi to immediately release or to transfer the detainees to the courts of law if there is a case against them.  Sudan government to hold to account SAF commandant in Talodi for this arrest.  Sudan government to end the state of emergency in conflict areas which enables MI to arrest civilians at will.  Sudan government to respect the constitutional rights of citizens  Sudan government to respect its international obligations. End: For more information, please write to hudo2009@gmail.com