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Sudan Tribune

Plural news and views on Sudan

Sudanese hold 8th anti-coup protests

anti-coup protest

A Protest in Khartoum North gathering demonstrators from Omdurman and Eastern Nile on December 6, 2021 (ST Photo)

December 6, 2021 (KHARTOUM) – Thousands of Sudanese demonstrated in Khartoum and several regions, on Monday, against the Hamdok al-Burhan agreement three years after the spark of protests against the former al-Bashir regime.

The eight anti-coup protests on Monday also commemorate the third anniversary of the first demonstration organized by school students in the Maerno district of Sennar state on December 6, 2018, after which protests against the former regime, spread across the country until its collapse on April 11, 2019.

Thousands of demonstrators from Omdurman and the eastern Nile district poured to the Almoassa area in Khartoum North, where the security forces killed 13 people in the recent anti-coup protests last month.

The slogans adopted by the Resistance Committees and chanted by the protesters were the rejection of negotiations with the military junta, no recognition of their coup of October 25 and no participation in the government that Abdallah Hamdok would form based on the November 21 deal with the coup leaders.

“No negotiation, No legitimacy and No participation”.

Prime Minister after his reinstatement directed the police chiefs several times to avoid the use of violence to disperse the protests stressing the need to ensure the freedom of expression.

However, the Security forces which were heavily deployed in Central Khartoum used tear gas to break up another demonstration near the presidential palace in Khartoum.

Also, some gangs armed with knives and batons sought to disperse protesters in Siteen (Sixty) Street one of the main streets in the capital but the big number of demonstrators forced them to withdraw after injuring one person.

The use of criminal gangs against demonstrators coincides with the recent appointment of Ahmed Ibrahim Mufaddal as the new director of the General Intelligence Service on November 27.

Mufaddal a known Islamist. He was the former deputy director of the dissolved National Intelligence and Security Services.

Gangmen
Gangmen armed with knives in Siteen Street seeking to disperse protesters on December 2021 (ST photo)

The armed gangs were used by the security services during the al-Bashir era to attack protesters.

Other protests were organized across the country in the north, east south and west of Sudan.

In Maerno area of Sennar State, tens of thousands gathered from different parts f the state to participate in the commemoration of the December 2019 protest.

Like other parts of the country, they chanted slogans rejecting the military coup and the Hamdok-al-Burhan deal.

There were reports in Khartoum about a meeting during the weekend between, Prime Minister Hamdok and the military leaders.

It was purported they discussed the implementation of the 21-November agreement including the amendment of the constitutional declaration and the formation of the new government.

(ST)