4 Sudanese journalists detained in Aswan face deportation

Four Sudanese journalists who hold refugee status in Egypt are facing an uncertain fate following their arrest by security forces in Cairo over a month ago. They were subsequently transferred to the Aswan Security Directorate in preparation for their deportation back to Sudan via the Qastal border crossing, a Sudanese source familiar with the incident told Mada Masr on condition of anonymity.

The source said that the incident began on September 22, when residents of a building on Qasr al-Nile Street in downtown Cairo filed a disturbance report concerning an office belonging to a media services company owned by a Sudanese-Egyptian national. 

This company produces media content for opposition-leaning channel Sudan Bukra. In response to the complaint, a police force was dispatched to the office and found "a man and a woman without residence permits,” the source said. “They took the man and deported him to Sudan [in early October]." 

Police left the office but a national security force returned the following day, arresting four journalists — two women and two men — who are registered as refugees in Egypt, according to the source. 

One of them is also registered as a journalist with the Sudanese Journalists Syndicate. The national security force also arrested Sudanese activist Mohamed Hassan Boshi, who was present at the office for an interview at the time, the source said.

Egyptian authorities deported Boshi to Uganda at his request, the source said. After his deportation, Boshi issued a statement on Facebook, saying he had been at the Sudan Bukra office by chance when he was arrested. Boshi said that his residence had expired, leading to his deportation after proving he had no ties to Sudan Bukra. He concluded his statement by commending Egyptian authorities for their understanding of his situation and for accepting his request to be deported to a location other than Sudan.

Two days after the journalists' arrest, Sudan Bukra issued a statement denying the existence of an office associated with them in Cairo. However, they confirmed that the detained journalists were content producers involved in preparing and producing the channel's output in Egypt, describing them as "an integral part of our media family." The channel said it was following developments regarding their arrest and offered to provide the necessary assistance, including appropriate legal representation.

According to the informed source, the four journalists are facing charges of "operating a media outlet without a license, producing media content without a license and possessing counterfeit software." 

“The prosecution intended to release them pending the case after consulting with the immigration administration and the National Security Agency,” the source said. 

But the latter refused to grant their release, despite interventions from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the Sudanese Journalists Syndicate and several Sudanese officials. 

According to the source, the interceders attempted to "calmly, without making a fuss, prevent [the journalists’] deportation or ensure they were sent to a country other than Sudan and [transported] by air rather than by land." 

The source said that the National Security Agency informed the journalists' families on Wednesday that the detainees had been moved to Abu Simbel ahead of their deportation via the Qastal border crossing. However, the source added, the journalists were transported from Abu Simbel back to the Aswan Security Directorate and “their fate remains unknown.”