KHARTOUM, Sudan
Sudanese security forces
arrested a senior opposition leader Tuesday, as officers fired tear gas to stop
thousands of protesters rallying against last year's military coup, an AFP
correspondent said.Sudan's deputy chief of the ruling military council General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo
The demonstrations were the
latest since an October 25 military takeover led by army chief Abdel Fattah
al-Burhan, which was followed by a broadening crackdown on civilian and
pro-democracy figures in the north-east African nation.
At least 85 people have been
killed and hundreds wounded by security forces during over four months of
protests demanding civilian rule and justice for those killed in
demonstrations, according to medics.
On Tuesday, security forces
fired a barrage of acrid tear gas at crowds heading towards the presidential
palace in the centre of the capital Khartoum, with several people injured, an
AFP correspondent said.
Tuesday's protests coincided
with International Women's Day.
Crowds chanted slogans in
support of Sudanese women -- who have played a key role in the recent protest
movement, as well as in the rallies that paved the way to the 2019 ouster of
longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir.
"Long live the 'Kandakas'," the crowd
shouted, using the name for ancient Nubian queens.
In North Khartoum, many waved national flags or
carried posters of fellow demonstrators who have been killed, witnesses said.
'Excessive force'
Also on Tuesday, prominent politician Babiker
Faisal was arrested while he was attending a funeral in North Khartoum,
according to Sudan's Unionist Alliance.
Faisal was a member of the committee tasked with
recovering properties seized during Bashir's three-decade long rule, before he
was toppled and jailed.
Last month, several senior committee members were
arrested, including Mohamed al-Fekki, who was also a member of Sudan's Sovereign
Council before he was ousted in the October coup.
Since the military takeover, authorities have
accused the committee of misappropriating funds that it confiscated,
accusations its members deny.
The military power-grab derailed a transition to
full civilian rule negotiated between military and civilian leaders following
Bashir's ouster.
On Monday, the UN Human Rights Council said it
estimated around 1,000 people have been arrested since the coup, including
women and children.
"The Sudanese authorities must cease to use
excessive force and live ammunition against protesters," said UN human
rights chief Michelle Bachelet said, calling for the release of
detainees.
Also on Monday, the ambassadors of the European
Union, Canada and the United States slammed "attempts to unduly limit
freedom of expression" in Sudan.
"We therefore call on the de facto Sudanese
authorities to return to commitments made to defend media freedom ... and
respect the right to peaceful assembly," the diplomats said.
On Tuesday, deputy chairman of Sudan's Sovereign
Council, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, met with African Union envoy Mohamed Lebatt to
discuss the crisis in the country. The AU has suspended Sudan's membership
since the coup. - AFP
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