Sudan: Mother of Rape Victim Faces Fresh Prosecution Days Before Release From Prison

What the report says

Hawa Omar Osman Saleh, the mother of a young woman who was gang-raped in Sennar, Sudan, is due to appear before Sennar Criminal Court on 10 November in a new case linked to her criticism of how her daughter’s case was handled. The complaint was filed by former trial judge Ismail Awad Rahma, according to Dabanga, and comes just 19 days before she is scheduled to finish a six-month prison term in another case.

The report says the new charges relate to allegations under Sudan’s 1991 Criminal Act of interfering with justice and insulting a public official during court proceedings. Saleh is already serving the earlier sentence, along with an outstanding fine her family says it cannot pay. Her punishment followed public comments she made after the first verdict in her daughter’s rape case.

Dabanga reported that the family objected to the original penalties, saying the court’s handling of the assault case was deeply flawed. It also said that a later appeal process ended with life sentences for the three men convicted of the rape on 15 September 2026, replacing earlier, lighter punishments. The family has asked for clemency and has questioned the fairness of the new prosecution, which it views as further retaliation against Saleh for speaking out.