Nine Egyptians freed after 19 months in Sudanese captivity

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By Mohamed Ezz

FAYOUM, Egypt – Nine Egyptians freed after being held for 19 months by Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces arrived in Egypt to celebrations on Thursday morning as the Sudanese army advanced in Khartoum.

“Praise be to God. A new age begins for us today. Our life starts anew from today,” said Ahmed Aziz Masry surrounded by dozens of people who came to congratulate him on his return to the village of Abo Shanab.

Residents flooded the streets of the village, 110 km (70 miles) southwest of Cairo, home to seven of the freed captives.

Sudan has been at war since fighting broke out in April 2023 between the army and the RSF over disagreements ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule. The war has caused a humanitarian disaster, with mass displacement and widespread hunger.

A UN report published on Thursday found “a widespread pattern of arbitrary detention, torture, and ill-treatment of detainees” by both the RSF and the Sudanese army.

The freed Egyptian captives had been working in Khartoum for years importing household goods and small electric appliances.

One, Emad Moawad, told Reuters he had a plane ticket to return to Egypt after the fighting started, but the airport was closed. “Sixty-five days later, the RSF raided our house and held us captive for over 19 months.”

Masry said the RSF falsely accused them of spying for the Egyptian intelligence service.

“Every few months, they would tell us they are releasing us but then put a blindfold on our heads and send us to another prison,” Masry said. At their fifth prison, the warden summoned Masry to his office to answer a phone call, and the voice on the other end said the situation had been resolved.

“A few weeks ago, they drove us to the last point controlled by the RSF and from there to the Sudanese Army, which took us to the Egyptian embassy then to Cairo.”

The war has drawn in multiple foreign powers, with the RSF accusing Egypt of aiding the army while the army accuses the United Arab Emirates of arming the RSF.

(Reporting by Mohamed Ezz)