KHARTOUM (Reuters) – A protester was shot and killed in the Sudanese city of Madani on Thursday, medics said, as demonstrators marched across the country to protest a military coup that has been followed by a steep economic downturn.
The 28-year-old is one of 90 protesters killed by security forces, according to the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors, but one of only a few reported outside the capital since protests kicked off in October.
Meanwhile in the capital Khartoum, thousands marched towards the country’s presidential palace, but were faced with gunfire, as well as tear gas from security forces, protesters and the resistance committees organising the march said on Thursday.
A Reuters reporter saw several people being carried away bleeding.
Military leaders say that protesters have the right to demonstrate peacefully and that those responsible for deaths belonging to security forces or otherwise will be brought to justice.
Other protests in cities such as Atbara, Gadaref, Nyala, and Sinja were seen in images from social media.
“We came out today to demand a better life for the Sudanese people and an end to the economic suffering and oppression,” said 18-year-old student Malak Yousif. “We will keep going and we won’t give up,” she added.
Sudan’s currency has lost more than a third of its value since the coup, rapidly driving up prices for fuel, food, and other goods, and has fallen even further on the parallel market.
In response, state news agency SUNA said that the central bank would deposit hard currency into local banks over three weeks, after receiving deposits from Gulf countries.
However, SUNA did not provide any details or amounts and sources familiar with the matter told Reuters earlier this week that there was no indication of any foreign deposit so far. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have not made statements on the subject.
The military says the coup was a necessary corrective to political infighting and economic troubles. Protesters demand the handover of power to a fully civilian government.
(Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz in Khartoum and Nafisa Eltahir in Cairo; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
