Sudan stops opposition figures from travelling abroad

SUDANESE security prevented three opposition figures from travelling to Paris to meet other opponents of the government, one said Monday, despite Khartoum's efforts to persuade parties to join a national dialogue.

After passing through immigration at Khartoum airport on Sunday, Communist Party chief Mohamed Mokhtar al-Khatib said he was summoned to an office, where the National Intelligence and Security Service told him he was "banned from travelling" and confiscated his passport.

Communist Party member Tariq Abdel Majid and United National Unionist Party chief Jala al-Azhari were also prevented from travelling on Sunday, Khatib said at a press conference.

The three had intended to attend a meeting of the opposition Sudan Call alliance, which includes civil society groups, rebels and political parties opposed to the rule of President Omar al-Bashir.

Because of the travel bans, the National Consensus Forces, another opposition grouping, said it would not send members to the Paris meeting.

The move was taken "as a protest against the ban and in solidarity with those who were banned", head of the opposition Sudanese Congress Ibrahim al-Sheikh said at the press conference.

The bans come as Bashir -- who is wanted by the International Criminal Court on war crimes charges related to Darfur -- has been trying to persuade his opponents to join a national dialogue to address the conflicts roiling Sudan's border regions and its ailing economy.

The talks started last month but most opposition groups and rebels have boycotted them, demanding a meeting outside Sudan to lay down conditions for the dialogue before they take part.

AFP