Police investigate Sudan links in rights lawyer's killing

Detectives investigating the murder of a respected human rights lawyer are looking into whether there are links between his work helping torture victims in Sudan and his killing. Abdelsalam Hassan Abdelsalam, a lawyer and intellectual who had promoted human rights in Sudan for 30 years, was found stabbed to death in his south London flat early on Saturday morning. Police sources said they are probing any connections between his death and his work promoting human rights in Sudan and helping torture victims seek redress. Abdelsalam had been the victim of repeated criminal incidents in the months before his death, including burglaries, antisocial behavior and harassment. This apparent targeting of the lawyer, who weighed 22 stone and walked with two sticks, is also being investigated. "We are looking at every aspect of his life, including his work as a human rights lawyer," said one police source. "He was quite a vulnerable individual as he walked with two sticks and weighed 22 stone and there were issues with where he lived."