§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many times the former Prime Minister of Sudan, Sadiq al-Mahdi, has been 521W detained in Sudan in recent years; on what grounds he has recently been detained; and what representations he has made to the Government of Sudan about this matter.
§ Mr. Douglas HoggSadiq Al-Mahdi was detained immediately after the 1989 coup and has subsequently been regularly held for questioning. He was most recently detained on 20 June. Although he has not yet been formally charged, allegations have been made in the officially controlled press of his involvement in a plot to assassinate senior members of the regime and conduct acts of sabotage. Our chargé in Khartoum raised his detention with the Sudanese authorities on 21 June. We shall continue to monitor developments closely.