Lawyers representing former South Sudan Vice President Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel have petitioned the justice ministry seeking his release, saying he has been held for months without charge in what they describe as unlawful detention.
The petition, submitted by Kiirdit & Co. Advocates, challenges the legality of Bol Mel’s detention and calls on authorities to either bring him before a court or release him immediately.
According to the filing on Friday, Bol Mel has been under house arrest for about 120 days since security forces arrested him on the night of Nov. 12, 2025. His lawyers say he has been held incommunicado and denied access to family members, legal counsel and medical care.
Bol Mel’s arrest marked a sharp fall for a businessman-turned-politician who was once seen as one of the most powerful figures in the country and a close ally of President Salva Kiir.
Kiir appointed Bol Mel as vice president in February 2025 and later named him first deputy chairman of the SPLM in May 2025, moves widely viewed as strengthening his influence within the ruling party.
However, on the same night of his arrest in November, Bol Mel was removed from his post as vice president and party deputy leader. He was also stripped of his intelligence rank, reduced from general to private, and expelled from military service.
His detention came at the height of discussions over succession to Kiir, 74, and is widely believed by political observers to be linked to an internal power struggle within the ruling party ahead of planned national elections in 2026.
In the petition, the lawyers said the government had not filed formal charges or presented Bol Mel before a court, which they argued violated constitutional guarantees of personal liberty and due process.
They also said security forces seized several of Bol Mel’s private assets, including homes and vehicles, without court authorization.
The legal team said Bol Mel was in poor health and warned his condition could worsen without proper medical treatment.
The lawyers asked the justice minister to intervene and require authorities to justify the detention or bring the former vice president before a court if evidence of a crime exists.
Copies of the petition were also sent to the South Sudan Human Rights Commission and Bol Mel’s family.
Government officials have not yet responded to the petition.