Thousands of boys chained, younger ones raped in Islamic schools in Sudan

Thousands of boys chained, younger ones raped in Islamic schools in Sudan

Some sick children were even left without medical help.

Thousands of boys have been tortured, abused and kept in chains by teachers in several Islamic schools in Sudan, a BBC documentary has revealed. One of the boys said he witnessed younger boys being raped by older students in the schools known as khalwas. Former khalwa student Fateh al-Rahman al-Hamdani made the discoveries after secretly filming inside 23 khalwas.

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Some sick children were even left without medical help. The film centres on the plight of two boys - Mohamed Nader and Ismail - who were almost beaten to death.

The boys had been imprisoned and tortured inside their khalwa for five days without food or water and they had tar rubbed into their wounds.

Mohamed Nader said he witnessed boys being raped by older students in the khalwa, saying: 'the worst thing about the khalwa is the rape. They make you go against your will.'

Further reports of rape and sexual abuse in other khalwas emerged during the course of the investigation.

A forensic doctor, who examined three boys that had recently escaped from another khalwa, told the BBC that boys had been repeatedly raped: ' asked them "How were you raped?" They said, "Sometimes our families visit us, they rape us just before they arrive."

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The documentary follows Mohamed Nader and Ismail's recovery from their brutal beating and their families' struggle for justice as they challenge the religious men in charge of the khalwa - known as 'sheikhs' - who are powerful and influential figures in Sudanese society.

Mohamed Nader's mother, Fatima, expressed hopes that they stand a better chance of holding the sheikh's accountable since the 2018 revolution that ousted long-serving President Omar al-Bashir and his government.

When confronted, the sheikh in charge of the boy's khalwa admitted that it was wrong to imprison the children but said that beating and chaining were 'packed with benefits' and that it was common practice in most khalwas.

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