New York — The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Sudan's military to lift its travel ban on Emtithal Abdel Fadil, a reporter for the local independent Al-Jarida newspaper, which the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) imposed after detaining her for three days.

"The detention and travel ban imposed on Emtithal Abdel Fadil by the Sudanese Armed Forces are clear acts of harassment meant to intimidate reporters covering the war," said CPJ Regional Director Sara Qudah. "Sudanese authorities must cease all restrictions on journalists' movement so that they can report freely and without fear."

On April 19, the SAF arrested Abdel Fadil in the eastern city of Kassala at 5 a.m. as she was traveling to Port Sudan, according to the trade union Sudanese Journalists Syndicate and a journalist familiar with the case, who spoke to CPJ on condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisal. The soldiers blindfolded the journalist, searched her phone and social media accounts, and questioned her for three days before releasing her without charge, those sources said.

The SAF banned Abdel Fadil from traveling outside Kassala on the grounds that she could be summoned for further questioning at any time, the unnamed journalist told CPJ.

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The journalists' union condemned Abdel Fadil's arrest as "arbitrary" and the travel ban as "a flagrant violation of press freedom."

Sudan has been at war since April 2023. The power struggle between the SAF and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has displaced nearly 13 million people, causing famine and the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

CPJ has since documented dozens of abuses of the media, including arrests, threats, torture, and the killing of at least six journalists and two media workers.

CPJ's email to the SAF requesting comment on Abdel Fadil's arrest did not receive any replies.