Nasir Incident Court adjourns after judge falls ill

The Special Court for the Nasir Incident has adjourned its proceedings after one of the three judges fell ill and could not attend Monday’s session.

Presiding Judge James Alala told the court that Judge Stephen Simon was unwell and unable to take part in the proceedings.

The 114 sessions of the court had been scheduled to rule on an application by the prosecution and a counter-application by the defence on how the fifth defendant, Dr. Riek Machar, should present his defence.

The proceedings were briefly interrupted after Judge Alala noticed that members of the defence team were not seated in their designated places.

The lead Defence Advocate, Dr. Geri Raimondo, then raised an urgent application over what he described as serious threats to the safety of the defence team and the eight accused persons.

Raimondo called for immediate security measures and an independent investigation into the alleged threats, saying some of the accused, including Dr. Riek Machar, had been targeted.

Judge Alala, however, stopped the lawyer and said the hearing could not continue without one of the three judges, as the court did not have the required quorum.

He directed the defence to submit its application in writing and provide a copy to the prosecution.

The court has adjourned the hearing to Friday, 11 September 2026, when it is expected to rule on the applications submitted by both the prosecution and the defence.