Forces fire tear gas to break up Omdurman protests

KHARTOUM: Security forces fired tear gas to disperse dozens of demonstrators in Sudan’s Omdurman city, a witness said, in the latest of several weeks of anti-government protests sparked by economic and political grievances.

Amnesty International meanwhile accused security forces in the city of pursuing injured demonstrators inside a hospital after protests in which three people were killed.

Some people injured in the protests had been taken to the hospital for treatment.

Authorities said they were investigating Wednesday’s unrest.

The demonstrations are the most serious challenge yet to President Omar al-Bashir, a former army general who overthrew an elected government in 1989 but has since won elections that his opponents say were neither fair nor free.

Wednesday’s deaths raised to at least 22 the number of people killed in Sudan since protests began on Dec 19, including two security personnel, according to official figures.

Hundreds have also been injured and hundreds more have been arrested.

In Omdurman on Thursday, demonstrators blocked the city’s 40th Street before security forces attacked them with tear gas, forcing many to disperse into side roads. There were no immediate reports of any casualties.

The African nation has been rocked by weeks of almost daily anti-government protests sparked by rising food prices and cash shortages amid a deepening financial crisis. — Reuters