Diplomatic efforts are being made between Egypt and Sudan in order to release 101 Egyptian fisherman detained in Sudan for territorial breaches, Egypt's ambassador to Sudan, Osama Shaltout, confirmed to state news agency MENA on Thursday.
The fishermen were supposed to be released following their acquittal last week, but the Sudanese authorities reversed their decision and ordered that they be detained and retried, MENA reported.
“We trust the integrity of the Sudanese judiciary, and we are sure that the fishermen will be acquitted by the judiciary just like they were acquitted the first time,” Shaltout said.
The fishermen were bound for Eritrea, had the necessary permits and never intended to fish in Sudanese waters, according to Shaltout.
The 101 fishermen were arrested on 7 April and detained in the coastal city of Port Sudan.
Shaltout said that the embassy in Sudan has made significant attempts since the first day of the fisherman's arrest to have them released. It has also worked with the consulate in Port Sudan to follow closely on the litigation process, along with providing care for the fishermen and helped them communicate with their relatives in Egypt.
Earlier in July, families of the detained fishermen, mainly from the Nile Delta governorate of Daqahliya, staged protests to demand the authorities press for the fishermen’s release. Many of the men are the main providers for their families.
Egyptian foreign ministry spokesman Badr Abdel-Aty told MENA that the foreign ministry has been working in collaboration with the ministry of insurance and social affairs in order to distribute urgent aid for family members of the detained fishermen.
However, the head of an Egyptian fisherman's syndicate Nessim Badr El-Deen told Ahram Online on Monday that the arrests were made for political reasons and that he blames Egyptian authorities for not taking the case seriously.
"The families of the detained and I spoke several times with Sameh Shoukry and the answer is always 'we are following up on the matter,' and, as usual, nothing happened," he said.
This is not the first time that Sudan has arrested Egyptian fishermen for territorial breaches.
In September 2012, Sudan released a number of Egyptian fishermen in exchange for Sudanese miners held in Egyptian jails.
The foreign ministry issued several statements in 2015 warning fishermen against illegal trespassing in foreign waters and called on them to respect other states’ sovereignty.
