KHARTOUM: Protesters were defiant on the streets of Sudan early Tuesday to denounce a military coup, as international condemnation of the country’s security forces ramped up with the UN Security Council expected to meet later.
Telecommunications down, internet services limited
Telecommunications were interrupted in Sudan a day after the country’s top general, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, declared a state of emergency following Monday’s military takeover.
There was no official confirmation of the communications interruption.
Internet and phone services inside the country were severely limited, according to activists.
Life is at a standstill in the capital Khartoum, where shops and services are closed and some roads are still blocked by the military after a mostly quiet night.
Protesters return to streets day after coup announcemen
Chanting “Returning to the past is not an option,” crowds began gathering on the streets of Khartoum a day after Sudan’s military seized power from a transitional government.
Seven people died of gunshot wounds while 140 were injured on Monday, according to a health ministry official.
Protests broke out shortly after Sudan’s top general, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, announced the military takeover in a Monday morning televised address. The army had taken control “to rectify the revolution’s course”, said Burhan.
Soldiers detained Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, ministers in his government and civilian members of the ruling council, who have been heading a transition to full civilian rule following the April 2019 overthrow of autocrat Omar al-Bashir.
Internet services were cut across the country and roads into Khartoum were shut, before soldiers stormed the headquarters of the state broadcaster in the capital’s twin city of Omdurman.
“Civilian rule is the people’s choice,” chanted the demonstrators, who waved flags and used tyres to create burning barricades.
The information ministry said soldiers “fired live bullets on protesters … outside the army headquarters”.
Blinken ‘strongly’ condemns coup
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken “strongly” condemned the coup and called for the immediate return to civilian rule and the release of Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, who was detained on Monday.
“The United States strongly condemns the actions of the Sudanese military forces,” said Blinken said in a statement, as he expressed grave concern about reports that security forces used live ammunition against protesters.
“We firmly reject the dissolution of the civilian-led transitional government and its associated institutions and call for their immediate restoration,” Blinken said.
UN’s Guterres calls for Hamdok’s immediate release
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the military’s takeover and urged the immediate release of Prime Minister Hamdok.
“I condemn the ongoing military coup in Sudan. Prime Minister Hamdok and all other officials must be released immediately,” Guterres tweeted.