Three more people were killed in Sudan, a medical group said, as thousands once again took to the streets of the capital and other cities on Monday to protest protests that have rocked the country since a military coup three months ago. Had given.
The death toll among protesters since the military takeover on October 25 has risen to at least 76. The latest action could complicate UN efforts to find a way out of the country’s crisis.
Protesters, mostly young people, marched on the streets of Khartoum and its sister city of Omdurman on Monday, according to a pro-democracy movement. The movement said protests also took place elsewhere in the country, including Kasla, Red Sagar, Jazeera and the already troubled Darfur region.
Activists said security forces fired ammunition and tear gas to disperse the protesters at several places in the capital, including the fortified Rashtrapati Bhavan. He said the protest march was violently dispersed elsewhere in Omdurman.
Footage circulated online showed security forces attempting to disperse the protest with tear gas. Protesters were seen taking cover and pelting stones at soldiers.
Mona Kasem, a Khartoum protestor who took part in Monday’s march, said: “I am in protest today, as I did in all protests before, and will continue to do so until we have a civilian government. “
The Sudan Doctors Committee said security forces killed two protesters in Khartoum – one in the chest and the other in the head.
Medical groups said a third demonstrator was shot in the head and shoulder in Madani, the capital of Jazeera province, about 135 kilometers (85 miles) southeast of Khartoum.
Activist Nazim Sirag said at least six protesters in Khartoum and Omdurman were shot.
There was no immediate comment from the military-led government.
The coup upheld Sudan’s transition to democratic rule after three decades of repression and international isolation under autocratic President Omar al-Bashir. The African nation has been on a delicate path to democracy since a popular uprising in April 2019 forced the military to oust al-Bashir and his Islamic government.
Since the coup, at least 76 people have been killed and hundreds more injured in the protests, the medical group said. According to the United Nations, the December 19 protests in Khartoum also raised allegations of sexual violence, including rape and gang rape.
Sudan has been politically paralyzed since the coup. The turmoil has increased since the resignation of Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok this month, who complained of a failure to reach a compromise between the generals and the pro-democracy movement.
Hamdok was reinstated in November as part of a deal with the military that had angered the pro-democracy movement.
The UN mission has been consulting with rival Sudanese factions over the past two weeks in efforts to bridge the gap between the generals and the pro-democracy movement.
The protests call for an entirely civilian government to lead democratic change. The generals rejected that demand, saying they would hand over power only to an elected administration. Elections are scheduled for July 2023.
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