Capital Flight from Nyala Due to Extortion by Rapid Support Forces Elements
Sources from Nyala, the capital of South Darfur State, reported on Thursday that a number of traders and business owners have fled Nyala due to extortion and harassment they face from elements of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the city.
A source, who requested to remain anonymous, told Darfur24 that RSF elements, incited by an individual, filed a complaint against the merchant Mahmoud Ahmed, accusing him of espionage with the army.
The source added that RSF elements went to the merchant’s house in the Congo neighborhood and presented a document labeled “Your Presence is Requested.” The source continued, “They then took the merchant to an unknown location, and after three days, he was released following a financial settlement amounting to 900,000 Sudanese pounds.”
A former detainee, who also requested anonymity, told Darfur24 that three soldiers from the intelligence services filed charges against him for communicating with the army in Port Sudan. However, upon their arrival at his shop, they offered him a financial settlement in exchange for not being arrested.
He added, “When I refused, they took me to the Savana buildings and didn’t release me until 14 days later.”
Two matching sources confirmed to Darfur24 that there are arbitrary arrests of traders and business owners in Nyala, with their families being forced to pay ransoms for their release.
One of the sources pointed out that an RSF unit arrested a merchant from the popular market south of Nyala and initially demanded a payment of two billion pounds for his release. After negotiations, a settlement was reached to release him for a payment of 300,000 pounds.
