10 Protesters killed by Sudanese security forces
Khartoum, Nov 17 (EFE).- Ten people were fatally shot by security forces Wednesday during protests in the capital region against the Oct. 25 military coup, the Central Committee of Sudan Doctors (CCSD) said.
Two of the deaths took place in Khartoum, while seven protesters lost their lives in Khartoum North and one was killed in Omdurman, the CCSD said on Twitter.
The three cities, located on river banks near the confluence of the Blue Nile and the White Nile, are together home to nearly 10 percent of Sudan’s 43.85 million people.
The victims were shot in the head, chest and stomach, according to the CCSD, which accused the security forces of attacking the hospitals treating wounded protesters.
“Security forces have been attempting to raid Waad hospital, despite knowing that many wounded civilians are being treated and undergoing critical operations. The coup forces fired tear gas inside the hospital building in total disregard to patients, wounded and medical staff,” CCSD said.
At other hospitals in the capital area, the “coup forces … have been preventing wounded civilians and medical staff from entering the hospital buildings,” the organization said.
The CCSD says 25 people have been killed in demonstrations since Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan dissolved the joint military-civilian Sovereign Council that took charge following the ouster of dictator Omar al-Bashir in April 2019 after 30 years in power.
Five deaths were reported last Saturday following anti-coup protests in Greater Khartoum, while dozens of demonstrators were seen being loaded onto unmarked trucks.
NetBlocks, a London-based watchdog group that tracks cybersecurity and internet governance, issued an alert Wednesday about the state of communications in Sudan.
“Alert: #Sudan is now in the midst of a near-total telecommunications blackout, with fixed-line internet and calls cut as of 17 November 2021. The new disruption comes after 23 days of mobile blackouts which left the country largely disconnected,” NetBlocks said on Twitter.
The erstwhile civilian prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, remains under house arrest and last Thursday, Al-Burhan reappointed himself head of the Sovereign Council, signaling that he had no plans to relinquish power in the near future. EFE az-sr-ppa/dr
