The Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal handed down life prison sentences to eight individuals on charges of illicit arms trafficking and money laundering. Official state media confirmed the ruling after judicial authorities uncovered an integrated scheme designed to supply weapons and military hardware to the Sudanese Armed Forces.
Investigators established that the defendants forged official commercial documents and used shell businesses to channel weapons funds through financial institutions. The court ruled that the clandestine network posed serious risks to national security interests and violated strict international arms restrictions.
Senior Military and Intelligence Figures Named
The court ruling identified several prominent Sudanese political and security figures involved in the covert operation. Among those receiving life terms was Salah Abdullah Mohammed Saleh, widely known as Salah Gosh, the former director of Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Service.
The court also convicted Lieutenant General Yasser Abdulrahman Al Atta, assistant to the commander-in-chief of the Sudanese military, in connection with the procurement requests. Judicial findings showed that Al Atta actively organised logistics and arranged landing permits at Port Sudan airport for incoming cargo aircraft.
Other individuals handed life terms include Rashid Omar Abdul Qadir Ali, Ahmed Abdullah (also known as Abdullah Khalafallah), Ahmed Rabie Sayed Ahmed, Mohammed Fath Al Beik, Othman Al Zubair, and Maher Abdul Jalil. The court ordered all foreign nationals among the group deported from the country upon completing their prison sentences.
Corporate Penalties and Financial Confiscations
In addition to individual sentences, the court imposed strict punitive measures on six commercial firms implicated in laundering transaction funds. Each registered entity received a fine of one million dirhams alongside the permanent revocation of their operating licences.
The affected commercial entities include Rashed Omar Brokerage Company, Portex Trade Limited, Apollara Electronics Trading Company, Yellow Sand Trading Company, Wardat Al Masarra Trading Company, and Sudamina Free Zone. Authorities confirmed that these corporate structures operated as front mechanisms to conceal fund origins and ultimate transaction destinations.
The presiding judge further ordered the confiscation of 1.545 million dirhams in frozen cash alongside seized ammunition and communication devices used during the operation. Additional three-year prison terms and separate one-million-dirham fines were issued to multiple defendants for direct money laundering violations.
Diplomatic Repercussions in a Fractured Region
The court decision arrives during intense diplomatic friction between Abu Dhabi and Khartoum regarding Sudan's ongoing internal conflict. For over two years, the Sudanese Armed Forces have publicly accused the Emirati government of supplying equipment to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, an accusation Emirati officials have consistently denied.
By convicting high-ranking Sudanese army officials of using local private banks to smuggle weapons into Port Sudan, the legal ruling challenges Khartoum's official diplomatic narrative. Observers note that the verdict underscores heightened regulatory scrutiny over regional financial corridors as international organisations demand an end to weapons proliferation in the Horn of Africa.
