Five Sudanese church leaders appeared before court on Tuesday to face charges of "public nuisance" after participating in worship and prayer at a church in Khartoum.

The five pastors from the Sudanese Church of Christ (SCOC) were arrested on October 22 for refusing a court order to stop worship services in Omdurman.

Police entered the SCOC church compound at Al Thoura neighbourhoods in Omdurman and ordered the closure of the church, a move the five church leaders have strongly opposed.

The court hearing on Tuesday was referred to the Persecutor General after the police officer who opened the case repeatedly failed to attend the hearing deliberately, a source told Morning Star.

The five pastors who appeared before the court are Ayoub Tilian Tutu, Ali Al-Hakim Alaam, Imbrathor Hamad, Habil Ibrahim and Sheikh Abdel-baqi.