| Protest against price rise leaves 6 dead in Sudan |
NYALA (Sudan) Six people were killed on Tuesday during a protest against high prices in Sudan, a state government official said, in the worst violence since Arab Spring-style demonstrations began more than six weeks ago.
“According to reports we received, six people were killed,” Bothina Mohmed Ahmed, of the South Darfur government, said.
She had no details of how they died, in the state capital Nyala, and added that a number of people were also injured.
A witness earlier said that police had fired tear gas at the demonstrators scattered in groups around Nyala’s main market. He said protesters threw stones at government buildings and burned tyres in the street.
Like other demonstrators in Sudan, they repeated a call made by Arab Spring protesters around the region: “The people want the fall of the regime.”
Four bleeding protesters and three security officers were taken away for medical treatment from the demonstration, the witness said.
Nobody was allowed inside the city’s hospital where a crowd had gathered outside, he added.
Protests have dwindled during the Holy Month of Ramadan.
But a strike by public transport drivers upset over high fuel prices has added to the burden of Nyala residents.
The strike apparently triggered a protest on Monday by more than 200 students, which escalated on Tuesday, the African Union-United Nations peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) said.
“This has been happening on the main roads and in the main market area. There’s been some damage to buildings,” said Unamid spokesman Christopher Cycmanick.
Ahmed said the demonstration started because students “rejected the price of transport announced by the government”.
Agence France-Presse
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