Sudan suspends work of Saudi and UAE owned TV channels

Sudan on Tuesday suspended the work of Saudi state-owned broadcasters Al Arabiya, Al Hadath and the UAE-owned Sky News Arabia channel "due to [their]  lack of commitment to the required professionalism and transparency and failure to renew [their] licenses", the Sudanese state news agency (SUNA) said.

The Sudanese Journalists Syndicate condemned the decision by the information ministry, saying it was a clear violation of freedom of expression and freedom of the press.

"Closing satellite channels and restricting those working in the profession would silence the voice of the professional media, and would also open the door to the spread of rumours and hate speech," the syndicate said on Tuesday in a statement.

The decision was a continuation of intimidation tactics imposed on journalists who had been working under extreme conditions since war broke out last April, the statement added.

Al Hadath stated that it had not yet been notified of the decision to suspend the work of its channel and Al Arabiya in Sudan, in a post on X.

"We were surprised to hear of the decision to stop Al Hadath and Al Arabiya channel on state tv," it added in a another post on X.

The war in Sudan, which is approaching its first anniversary, erupted after a political transition towards civilian rule and free elections was stalled and a power struggle took place between the regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) 

(Reuters and The New Arab Staff)