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Student killed in Sudan riots against soaring bread prices

Tuesday January 09 2018
mkate

A man works at a bakery in Khartoum, Sudan, on January 5, 2018. A student was killed and six others injured on the third day of protests in the country over the soaring cost of bread. AFP PHOTO

By MOHAMMED AMIN

A student was killed and six others injured on Sunday after protests that took place in Sudan over the soaring cost of bread.

The protests that began on Friday in Wad Medani city in central Sudan have extended to other cities including the capital Khartoum.

Sudanese authorities on Sunday seized six newspapers that covered the protests and also detaining some opposition leaders including the leader of the Sudanese Congress Party Omer Al-Digair.

Investigation

The governor of the West Darfur state Fadl Almual Alhaja confirmed the death of Alzubair Sakiran, a high secondary school student in El-Ginena city near the border with Chad.

“AlZubair Sakiran, has been killed and other five students and one police have been injured during the protests on Sunday in El-Ginena” the governor said.

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The governor has accused the opposition of exploiting the hiking of the prices to destabilise the country, adding that a probe has been opened to investigate the circumstances around the incident.

The police and paramilitary forces the Rapid Support Forces (SRF) have reportedly used the live bullets and tear gas.

Extension

In the meantime, massive protests have extended to universities in the capital Khartoum.

Students of Khartoum University, Omdurman Islamic University clashed with the police in some main streets of Khartoum on Sunday.

Sudanese opposition parties have called for more protests against the government economic measures.

Sudan witnessed sporadic protests in late 2016 after a government decision to cut fuel subsidies.

The authorities cracked down on those protests in an attempt to prevent a repeat of deadly unrest that followed a similar round of subsidy cuts in 2013.

Dozens of people were killed in 2013 protests when security forces crushed large street demonstrations, drawing international condemnation.

- Additional reporting from AFP.

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