Report: Sudan President Orders Immediate Release of All Political Prisoners
By VOA News April 10, 2018
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir ordered the immediate release of all political prisoners in the country, the state news agency SUNA said on Tuesday.
The report said the order is part of an effort to promote "reconciliation, national harmony and peace" weeks after mass arrests were made to suppress anti-government protests.
The report did not say how many prisoners would be released, nor did it identify any of them.
The North African country is grappling with a currency crisis and very high rates of inflation that have fueled unrest, although public demonstrations are effectively banned and routinely quelled by security forces.
Bashir ordered the release of 80 political detainees in February. Opposition groups have said about 50 remain in jail, including prominent politician and Sudanese communist party leader Mohamed Mokhtar al-Khatib.
The United States and European embassies in Sudan had requested that all detainees be released. The U.S. embassy contends many of the prisoners are being held in "inhumane conditions."
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