Warda Ahmed Souleimane

Warda Ahmed Souleimane is a Mauritanian human rights activist and blogger. She is known for her anti-slavery campaigning, in addition to her work against racial discrimination and social exclusion in Mauritania. Souleimane is a member of the Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement.

Activism Souleimane has been described as a prominent member of Mauritania's abolitionist movement, and is a member of the media team of the Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement (IRA), an anti-slavery group that campaigns against slavery, racial discrimination and social exclusion, advocating for equality and for an end to caste-based discrimination and racial hierarchies within Mauritanian society.

Souleimane was detained between 1 and 17 April 2025 following a criminal complaint made against her by businessman and Equity Party activist Khatri Ould Dje, who had accused her of defamation and slander after she had criticised his support of the government on social media. Souleimane had refused to comply with a court order that required her to register daily with local authorities and refrain from using social media during the investigation into Dje's complaint, which led to her being arrested and detained at a women's prison in Arafat, Nouakchott-Sud. The IRA described Souleimane's detention as "arbitrary" and accused Dje of making defamatory statements against the IRA. On 17 April, Souleimane was released from prison without charge following a court appearance in Nouakchott.

On 31 October 2025, Souleimane was arrested in Nouakchott by unidentified police officers; at the time of her arrest, no details were shared by authorities about why she had been arrested or where she had been taken.

Souleimane's whereabouts were confirmed following a court appearance on 5 November at the regional court of Nouakchott-Ouest where she was charged with "inciting the population to overthrow the regime" and stated to have been held at the headquarters of the Cybercrime Unit. During a court hearing in which she did not have legal representation, Souleimane acknowledged having written the Facebook post, but denied that it had called for violence and stated it was within her rights to freedom of impression. The prosecutor requested that Souleimane be held in pre-trial detention.

Front Line Defenders stated that Souleimane's detention was linked to her "peaceful and legitimate work defending human rights and denouncing racial discrimination" in Mauritania and called for her immediate and unconditional release.