Sudan on Friday denounced Western criticism of the arrest of two high-profile former officials opposed to military rule and charged with corruption, saying it was contrary to "diplomatic norms and practices".
Khalid Omer Yousif and Wagdi Salih were arrested on Wednesday, a move Norway, the United States, Britain, the European Union, Canada, and Switzerland condemned as "harassment and intimidation" by Sudan's military authorities.
"This is blatant interference in internal Sudanese affairs, contrary to diplomatic norms and practices," the Sudanese Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Both men had been part of the government that was toppled on Oct. 25.
The coup ended a partnership between the military and civilian political parties, drawing international condemnation and plunging Sudan into turmoil, with frequent nationwide demonstrations against the coup and a wave of political detentions.
Lawyers told Reuters this week more than 100 people remain in prison.
Protests organized by neighborhood resistance committees have drawn hundreds of thousands of people, and at least 79 have been killed and more than 2,000 injured in crackdowns.
The European Union together with five western countries Friday expressed alarm over the arrests and detentions of several high-profile political figures in Sudan on Wednesday.
"These troubling actions are part of a recent pattern of arrests and detentions of civil society activists, journalists, and humanitarian workers occurring throughout Sudan these last weeks," said the EU, Norway, the UK, the US, Canada, and Switzerland in a joint statement.
"We condemn this harassment and intimidation on the part of Sudan's military authorities. This is wholly inconsistent with their stated commitment to participate constructively in a facilitated process to resolve Sudan's political crisis to return to a democratic transition," it said.
The statement called "for an immediate end to such practices and for the immediate release of all those unjustly detained."
"We remind Sudan's military authorities of their obligations to respect the human rights and guarantee the safety of those detained or arrested and the need to ensure that due process is consistently followed in all cases," said the statement.
The lifting of the state of emergency, declared at the time of the October 25 military takeover, would send a positive signal, it added.
