[JURIST] The Court of Appeal in Sudan [JURIST news archive] has rejected a request for the release of 25 uncharged members of the opposition Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), alleged to have plotted the overthrow of the government. Sudan's Criminal Procedure Act of 1983 allows for the detention of suspects under investigation for up to two weeks before they must be released or charged. The DUP members have been in custody for over 10 weeks since a flurry of arrests [Reuters report] by Sudanese authorities in July 2007.

The 25 detainees, including Umma Party for Reform and Renewal leader Mubarak al-Fadil, his secretary-general Abdel Jalil al-Basha, DUP deputy secretary-general Ali Mahmoud Hassanein and retired police, security and army officers, plan to take their case to the country's Supreme Court. Amnesty International, citing medical reports, continues to accuse the government of torturing and mistreating the detainees [Amnesty International report]. Reuters has more.