Anger after protestor killed in Sudan’s Northern State

On Monday, people in Dongola in Sudan’s Northern State took to the streets demanding retribution for a protestor who was shot dead on Sunday. The Sudanese Teachers Committee denies any involvement of its members in the protests in El Obeid in North Kordofan in end-July, whereby four students and two other protestors were killed.

The angry demonstrators closed the Dongola-El Saleem bridge as well, a listener reported to Radio Dabanga.

He said that the protestors denounced the killing of Yasir Yasin who was fatally hit by live bullets when regular forces began to shoot at people demonstrating against the deterioration of the electricity services in Dongola on Sunday evening.

The acting governor of the state, Maj-Gen Mohamed El Saouri ordered the formation of a committee to investigate the killing.

Teachers

The Sudanese Teachers Committee has strongly denied involvement of teachers in protests in El Obeid, capital of North Kordofan, last week.

The committee said in a press conference in Khartoum on Tuesday that the accusation is “just a fabrication, without any proof”.

When school students staged a spontaneous protest rally against the scarcity of bread and lack of transport to their schools in the North Kordofan capital on July 29, militiamen belonging to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) started shooting. Four students and an activist were killed instantly. Dozens of others sustained bullet wounds. One of them died two days later in a hospital.

The acting head of the committee, Gumriya Omar said the teachers wonder: “What is more important for the military junta; to prosecute the killers of the students or those who allegedly incited them to go out in demonstration?”

She added that a delegation of committee members went to El Obeid to meet with the North Kordofan secretariat and those investigating the case.

After the ruling junta ordered the indefinite closure of schools in the country on July 31 to prevent more student demonstrations, Amnesty International called on Khartoum “to close down trigger-happy paramilitary force [the RSF militia] in Sudan, not schools”.

Radio Dabanga reported on Sunday that three lecturers of the University of Bahri in Khartoum North have been accused by the university administration of inciting students to stage protests.

Our editorial independence means that we can continue to provide factual updates about political developments to Sudanese and international actors, educate people about how to avoid outbreaks of infectious diseases, and provide a window to the world for those in all corners of Sudan. Support Radio Dabanga for as little as €2.50, the equivalent of a cup of coffee.