Sudan releases dozens of political detainees

Sudanese authorities on Monday released dozens of political detainees one day after lifting a state of emergency in the country.

"At least 33 political detainees have been released today after the lifting of the emergency," said Samir Shaikh Aldin, a spokesman for the Emergency Lawyers advocacy group.

He said 24 prisoners were freed from Port Sudan prison and nine others from Dabak prison in the capital Khartoum.

Shaikh Aldin, however, said around 150 others are still being held in prisons.

On Sunday, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the head of Sudan's ruling Sovereign Council, lifted the state of emergency imposed in the country since October.

Al-Burhan said the move aims to create a favorable atmosphere for national dialogue between the Sudanese government and opposition groups.

The release of political detainees was quickly welcomed by a trilateral mechanism to facilitate intra-Sudan talks involving the UN, the African Union, and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) trade bloc.

It praised the release of prisoners and the lifting of the state of emergency as positive steps to create the conditions needed to reach a peaceful solution to the current political impasse in Sudan.

"We encourage the authorities to complete the release of the detainees, and to take further steps that ensure the protection of the rights to peaceful assembly and expression, ending the excessive use of force against protesters and ensuring accountability for all violations committed after the Oct. 25 coup," it added in a statement.

Sudan has been in turmoil since last October, when the military dismissed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok's transitional government, a move decried by political forces as a "military coup."