Authorities in Eastern Sudan Arrest Hizb ut-Tahrir Members

21 December 2025

December 20, 2025 (AL-SHAWAK, Gadaref) – Authorities in eastern Sudan have arrested five members of Hizb ut-Tahrir following a mosque speech regarding a plot to separate the Darfur region, the party said on Saturday.

Hizb ut-Tahrir – Wilayah Sudan, which advocates for the restoration of an Islamic Caliphate, has been holding periodic rallies in army-controlled cities to warn against the fragmentation of the country.

The party identified the detainees as Osman, Hassan al-Amin Kanda, Mohamed Thamin Adam, Ahmed Babakir, and al-Amin Abdallah.

The arrests occurred in Al-Shawak, Gedaref state, following a demonstration in front of the town’s Great Mosque. During the event, Osman al-Amin Kanda spoke about the dangers of what he described as a U.S. plan to “tear Sudan apart” by detaching Darfur.

Kanda told the gathering that maintaining the unity of the state was a “fateful issue” and a religious obligation.

The party said the arrests show the government is moving forward with the U.S. agenda to divide the country, comparing the situation to the 2011 secession of South Sudan.

“Those like these should be honoured, not arrested, because they performed a religious obligation that many in the country, both military and civilian, have failed to carry out,” the party said in a statement.

Hizb ut-Tahrir rejects the use of force or armed action to achieve power, relying instead on “intellectual struggle” and “political strife” to persuade society and the military of its ideology.

Concerns over the secession of Darfur have grown since the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) seized El Fasher on October 26, the last major urban stronghold in the region previously held by the central government.

Darfur Region Governor Minni Arko Minawi has rejected a government peace proposal, fearing it could lead to the region’s formal separation. The plan reportedly involves cantonment of RSF fighters followed by negotiations on an independent regional government and a UN-sponsored national dialogue.