Sudan: 53 people injured in anti-army protests

KHARTOUM, Sudan

At least 53 protesters were injured in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum in clashes erupted Thursday between the police and demonstrators, the Sudanese Health Ministry said.

In a Friday statement, the ministry added that many women and children were among the injured.

Meanwhile, the Sudanese Professional Association (SPA) has condemned the violence, calling for dismissing the minister of interior as well as the police inspector.

“This attitude against the protesters resembles the misdeeds of the old regime, so we demand the Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok to fire the police inspector and the interior minister,” said the SPA which was the main mobilizer for the protests that ousted the former regime of Omar al-Bashir.

The Sudanese government, for its part, condemned the use of violence, stressing that all those responsible would be punished.

Faisal Mohamed Salih, the government spokesman, said morning on Friday that the right of protest in the country should be guaranteed describing that as a "gain of the Sudanese revolution"

Thousands of protesters have marched in Khartoum on Thursday, calling for restructuring the national army and returning the recently dismissed officers.

On Tuesday, the head of the Sovereign Council and of the army Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan dismissed dozens of army officers.

The protesters say that many of the dismissed officers are being punished for "showing solidarity with the anti-Bashir protests."

Al-Bashir, who ruled Sudan since 1989, was ousted by the military in April, 2019 after mass protests against his rule.

In December, the former president was sentenced to two years in prison for corruption. He is also facing charges of undermining the constitution over the 1989 military coup he led.