SAWT BEIRUT INTERNATIONAL

| 29 March 2024, Friday |

BBC says Sudan arrested 3 of its journalists amid protests

Sudanese police detained three of the BBC’s journalists in the capital on Monday, as thousands of Sudanese took to the streets throughout the country in the latest anti-coup rallies in the African country.

According to a claim by the news agency, the journalists working for its Arabic service were brought to an undisclosed location in Khartoum. According to the report, the BBC is working with authorities to secure their speedy release.

The officials had no quick comment.

According to the pro-democracy movement, thousands of Sudanese marched through the streets of Khartoum and its twin city Omdurman.

According to activist Nazim Sirag, security forces used live gunfire, rubber bullets, and tear gas to disperse demonstrators, particularly outside Khartoum’s presidential palace.

Images on social media showed tear gas clouding Khartoum rallies with protestors flinging stones and empty gas canisters against police officers.

According to Sirag, at least 12 protestors were injured and sent to hospitals for treatment. There were no recorded deaths.

Protests were also held in other parts of the country, notably the eastern city of Port Sudan.

Monday’s protest was the latest in a string of unrest that has erupted since the military deposed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s civilian-led administration on Oct. 25, only to be rehabilitated a month later under intense international pressure.

The country’s crisis deepened when he resigned on January 2 after his efforts to find a compromise between the military and the pro-democracy movement failed.

Sudan’s journey to democracy has been thrown off course by the coup, which comes after three decades of brutality and international isolation under authoritarian President Omar al-Bashir.

Since a popular uprising led the military to depose al-Bashir and his harsh administration in April 2019, the African nation has been on a precarious route to democracy.

    Source:
  • AFP