Sudan premier safe after blast in capital
Khartoum: Sudan’s prime minister has survived an assassination attempt after a blast in the capital Khartoum, state media said.
Abdalla Hamdok’s family confirmed he was safe following the explosion, which targeted his convoy.
No-one has immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
Footage posted online showed two white, Japanese-made SUVS used by Sudan’s top officials parked on a street, showing signs of damage, including broken windows. Another vehicle was badly damaged in the blast.
Mr Hamdok was appointed prime minister last August, after pro-democracy protests forced the military to remove the autocratic president Omar al-bashir and replace it with a civilian-led government.
After months of negotiations, the military and the pro-democracy movement reached a power-sharing deal in August.
The deal established a joint military-civilian, 11-member sovereign council that will govern Sudan for the next three years.
Military generals remain the de facto rulers of the country and have shown little willingness to hand over power to the civilian-led administration.
Mr al-bashir came to power in an Islamistbacked military coup in 1989 and imposed a strict interpretation of religion on its citizens, limiting personal freedoms.
The country was an international pariah for its support of Islamic extremists.
Caracas: A fire in a warehouse near the capital Caracas has destroyed most of the voting machines held there, according to the electoral council in Venezuela.
Almost 50,000 voting machines and 582 computers used in the country’s elections went up in flames, electoral council chief Tibisay Lucena said.
It is not yet known if parliamentary elections due later this year could be affected by the loss of the machines.
Mexico City: Police in Mexico have clashed with protesters, following a huge march marking International Women’s Day.
About 80,000 people took to the streets to highlight the country’s rising levels of violence against women.
The rally began peacefully, but police say some groups threw petrol bombs and officers responded with tear gas. More than 60 people were injured.
Tensions are high ahead of a strike in Mexico when women were due to strike in protest at gender-based violence.
Government data said 3,825 women met violent deaths last year, 7 per cent more than in 2018. That works out to about 10 women killed each day in Mexico.