Sudan arrests opposition leaders after Ethiopia mediation effort

Protest leaders Mohamed Esmat and Ismail Jalab arrested shortly after meeting mediator, Ethiopia’s PM Abiy Ahmed.

(Aljazeera) – Sudanese security forces have arrested two opposition leaders shortly after they met with Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed during reconciliation talks in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum.

Abiy, who has emerged as a key regional leader, met representatives of both sides on Friday in a bid to revive talks between Sudan’s ruling generals and protest leaders after the military launched a brutal crackdown on protesters that killed dozens of people this week.

Among the protest movement delegates he met were opposition politician Mohamed Esmat and a leader of the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), Ismail Jalab.

Esmat was arrested on Friday soon after his meeting with Abiy, while Jalab was arrested at his residence early on Saturday, their aides told AFP news agency.

“A group of armed men came in vehicles at 3am (1:00 GMT) and took away Ismail Jalab … without giving any reason,” Jalab aide Rashid Anwar told AFP, adding that SPLM-N spokesperson Mubarak Ardol was also detained.

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