Sudan frees jailed opposition leader al-Mahdi

Sudanese authorities released opposition leader Sadiq al-Mahdi on Sunday, Sudan’s State Minister of Information, Yasser Youssef, told Reuters.

Mahdi, who was arrested in mid-May, was accused of undermining the constitution, a charge that could have led to the death penalty, after he said the government had committed violence against civilians in the Darfur region.

Minister Youssef said the release of Mahdi was done within a “legal framework” but did not give further details.