Sudan shut down capital, following coup that resulted in violent turmoil

At least seven people were killed in rioting sparked by the military takeover in Sudan, which halted Sudan’s democratic transition two years after a popular revolt ended decades of dictatorship.

Roads were blocked, shops were shut, phones were down, and mosque loudspeakers blared calls for a general strike in Sudan on Tuesday, a day after the army seized power in a coup.

Plumes of smoke rose over Khartoum from tyres set ablaze by protesters.

Life came to a halt in the capital and in its twin city Omdurman across the Nile, with roads blocked either by soldiers or by protester barricades.

The night appeared to have passed comparatively quietly after Monday’s unrest when protesters took to the streets after soldiers arrested Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and other civilians in the cabinet.

A health ministry official said seven people had been killed in clashes between protesters and the security forces.

On Monday, takeover leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan dissolved the military-civilian Sovereign Council set up to guide Sudan to democracy following the overthrow of long-ruling autocrat Omar al-Bashir in April 2019.

Reuters