Human rights report: Sudan failed to implement recommendations for protecting journalists and freedom of expression

July 21, 2026 (PEN) A joint report by the Sudanese Journalists Syndicate and the Committee to Protect Journalists revealed Sudan’s failure to implement most of the UN recommendations related to freedom of expression and the protection of journalists, amid escalating violations since the outbreak of war in April 2023.

The two organizations submitted the report to the United Nations Human Rights Council, documenting what they described as the "devastating collapse" of the press situation in Sudan.

The report noted widespread violations including the killing of journalists, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, torture, and sexual violence against female journalists, as well as the withholding of information and the use of laws to criminalize journalistic work.

The report noted widespread destruction of the country’s journalistic infrastructure as a result of the war, which exacerbated the decline in press freedom and restricted the ability of journalists to do their work.

He pointed out that Sudan has not complied with the vast majority of the recommendations it accepted during the previous Universal Periodic Review.

The Universal Periodic Review is a UN mechanism for assessing the human rights situation in member states once every four and a half years, and through it, recommendations are issued to improve governments' compliance with their international commitments.