After participating in non-violent protests advocating for political change in Sudan, Ibrahim was arrested and released twice in January 2019. Along with other academics, Ibrahim drafted a proposal for reforms to help resolve the political crisis in Sudan. Ibrahim was subsequently detained on February 21, 2019, and imprisoned for more than a month. Multiple groups, including Sudanese academics, the African Society of Human Genetics, the International Human Rights Network of Academies and Scholarly Societies, the Committee of Concerned Scientists, and Ibrahim's international colleagues, called for his release. Ibrahim was freed along with other political prisoners following the 2019 Sudanese coup d'état.