Sudanese Christian Businessman Detained at Airport Upon Return From Exile
(Christian Solidarity Worldwide) — Sudanese Christian businessman Ashraf Samir Mousad Obid was detained at Khartoum Airport on Jan. 27 under the orders of the General Intelligence Service (GIS).
Obid was returning to Sudan for the first time since fleeing the country in 2015, following a campaign of harassment by the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS). The new security service, the GIS, had given assurances that all names previously placed on the travel restriction list had been removed, and those targeted by the former al Bashir government would be able to travel freely.
However, Obid was detained at Khartoum Airport at 4 p.m. local time. When he asked officers for the reason of his detention, he was informed that his name was on a list submitted by GIS, and that he would be given the full reasons for his arrest once he was transferred to the GIS office. After being detained for an hour and a half, Obid was released, but informed that he could not leave the country, and that he would be called for a meeting with GIS at an unspecified date in the future. …
Obid left Sudan in 2015 after NISS forced him to sign a letter handing over 2000 hectares of land to the agency. The land is located in Burti, close to Soba Aradi district. Obid, who had a business in commercial farming, had sold the land to a Baptist Church in 2014. The church used the land for social projects, including feeding and providing care for homeless children.
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