Saeed Armani Yassir, a Sudanese opposition leader was briefly detained in Nairobi after being arrested following a red notice issued against him by Sudan’s military government in January.

Armani was seized on Wednesday by immigration officials at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) few minutes to 2pm after landing from Addis Ababa via Ethiopian airline flight No. ET 318.

The 64-year-old and leader of Sudan People’s Liberation Movement – Revolutionary Democratic Current (SPLM-RDC) was in possession of a Ugandan Passport No. B00184459, according to police.

Officials of the movement said Armani was driven to the city centre where he was interrogated by Interpol officers and set free but his travel documents were confiscated until yesterday when they were released on Thursday following intervention from “top Kenyan” government officials.

But a senior official based at Interpol’s Nairobi Central Bureau denied knowledge of Armani’s arrest saying: “I think those are malicious reports; we haven’t arrested such a person.”

The Sudanese government had on January 30, 2025 issued the red notice against Armani, a fierce critic of the military regime, that is facing stiff opposition from several groups including the reneged Rapid Support Forces (RSF) headed by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo alias Hemeti.

In a statement Armani claimed his arrest was politically instigated by the Sudan military government. “Justice for the people of Sudan should begin with the arrest of General Omer al-Bashir and his colleagues,” he said.

Armani had travelled to Nairobi for a meeting when he was temporarily stopped. The arrest came as the UN Security Council rejected the signing of a charter in Kenya a few days ago by Sudanese factions to establish a parallel government in Sudan.

On February 22, RSF and Sudanese political and armed groups signed the charter in Nairobi amid protests from Khartuom, which recalled its ambassador, Kamal Jabara.

The Sudanese army and RSF have since April 2023, been fighting in a bloody war that has left more than 20,000 people dead and close to 14 million others displaced, according to UN reports.

Nairobi however defended the move to host the rebels, maintaining that it was the first step of supporting peace efforts in the war-ravaged country.

“When Kenya offers this space, it is without any ulterior motives,” said Musalia Mudavadi, Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary.