Niger Arrests Six Sudanese Refugees in Raid On Agadez Camp

London — "They took 6 of our strongest voices."

Nigerien authorities have arrested six Sudanese refugees from a camp on the outskirts of the northern city of Agadez who were among the most visible organisers of ongoing protests over poor conditions and the absence of resettlement opportunities. The whereabouts of those arrested in the 21 August police raid remain unknown.

Refugees in the camp say they believe the arrests are retaliation against the six individuals for their involvement in the protests, and an effort to pressure people in the camp to end the daily demonstrations, which have been taking place for nearly a year.

"They took 6 of our strongest voices on August 21st. Over 15 military vehicles to silence mothers asking for dignity. We're still here. We're still fighting," Ismail Youssef, a refugee living in the camp, wrote on X.

Mary Lawlor, UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders, told The New Humanitarian via email that the arrests "may constitute an enforced disappearance, and a grave violation of Niger's obligations under human rights law".

"All six of those arrested were part of the committee that has been peacefully organising in defence of the rights of refugees in Agadez," Lawlor continued. "I do consider them human rights defenders."

She said she is calling for their "immediate and unconditional release".

Witnesses who spoke to The New Humanitarian said the arrests involved the use of force and took place in the presence of government officials from Niger's National Eligibility Commission for Refugee Status (known by its French acronym CNE).

Refugees at the site identified those detained as Mohamed Abdallah, Abdullah Hashim, Imad Younis, Zubaida Abdeljabbar, Daoud Djouma Zahra, Moussa Houda Mohamed.

The camp in Agadez was established in 2018 and is jointly managed by the UN's refugee agency (UNHCR) and Nigerien authorities. UNHCR refers to the facility as the Agadez Humanitarian Centre.

UNHCR confirmed it was aware of the arrests but said it was not informed beforehand. In a written response to The New Humanitarian, spokesperson Faouzia Haidara said: "UNHCR is actively engaging with the relevant authorities, including at central and regional levels, to obtain further information, advocate for due process, and remind counterparts of Niger's international obligations."

According to accounts shared with The New Humanitarian, several vehicles arrived at the centre around 10:30am. Khalil Hussein, a refugee in the centre, said police surrounded the site, entered residential areas, and forced people from their homes.

"They beat some of them. The arrests were carried out by force, without any explanation," Hussein told The New Humanitarian via WhatsApp.

Hussein added that three representatives of the CNE were present during the raid, known to refugees in the centres as Mr. MK, a deputy director, Mr. Noah, and Mr. Adam, who acted as a translator. The CNE did not respond to requests for comment or to clarify the full names of those identified.

The New Humanitarian has reviewed video footage from the arrests, including a clip showing a man being detained and placed into a vehicle at the camp. Several refugees - including Hussein, Ismail Youssef, and Ahmed Moursal - told The New Humanitarian that this man was Imad Younis.

Refugees said the six were taken first to local police cells in Agadez. Relatives, including Houda Mohamed's husband, Yaqoub, reportedly visited them a day later on 22 August, only to find that they had been transferred under guard to Zinder, a city in southeastern Niger, nearly 900 kilometres away.

Uncertainty remains about the detainees' exact whereabouts. "It is not clear whether they are in Agadez or have been transferred to another place, such as Zinder. We are trying to verify the information we receive," said Hussein.

Youssef suggested that authorities were deliberately withholding confirmation to pressure the protest movement. "The authorities don't want to confirm anything until they see whether the protest will stop," he told The New Humanitarian via WhatsApp.

Niger's authorities have not issued a statement about the arrests or transfers, and local police and the CNE did not respond to requests for comment.

The Agadez Humanitarian Centre is currently home to around 1,900 people, according to UNHCR, with most arriving from Sudan. Refugees in the centre have been holding demonstrations since 22 September last year.

Protest participants have gathered daily to call for evacuation or resettlement and to draw attention to deteriorating conditions and the lack of local integration options. "We've been trapped in the desert for years," Abdallah told The New Humanitarian months prior to his arrest.

Protesters say life in the centre has become increasingly untenable, citing restrictions on movement, inadequate medical care, and cuts to food and water supplies. UNHCR publicly acknowledged these grievances in both January and May of this year. "Since September 2024, a group of asylum-seekers residing at the Centre have organized daily peaceful protests, expressing dissatisfaction with living conditions and requesting relocation to third countries," UNHCR's January statement said.

The 21 August arrests followed earlier measures against protesters. On 16 July, four of August's six arrestees - Abdallah, Younis, Djouma Zahra, and Houda Mohamed - along with four others, were taken into custody after a CNE official arrived at the centre with Ministry of the Interior letters showing that their refugee status had been revoked, effective 3 July.

Younis said all eight were pressured to sign documents in French that they could not understand. He recalled asking the official to translate the papers into Arabic but being refused. The group was later released, but the revocations remained in place, leaving them without protection.

Despite the arrests, "peaceful protests continue daily and have not stopped," said Hussein.

On 26 August, the protesters' X account, @refugeesinniger, added: "The peaceful protest of the refugees in Agadez, who demand security and a decent life, enters its 338th day, and the concerned authorities have not intervened to solve the crisis," alongside photos of the day's demonstration.

On the same day, Ahmed Adam, another refugee, circulated an urgent written appeal on behalf of camp residents, describing the Agadez Humanitarian Centre as a "complete danger zone". The statement detailed food cuts, arbitrary arrests, and misconduct by UNHCR staff as core grievances, and called for the release of detainees, resettlement to a third country, and emergency humanitarian aid.

A previous round of protests staged by refugees outside the UNHCR office in Agadez in 2020 were violently dispersed by Nigerien authorities and the camp was almost entirely burned to the ground.

For more background on this story, read:

Edited by Eric Reidy.

Read this report on The New Humanitarian. The New Humanitarian puts quality, independent journalism at the service of the millions of people affected by humanitarian crises around the world.

Niger Arrests Six Sudanese Refugees in Raid On Agadez Camp

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