Protesters took to the streets in Sudan’s capital and elsewhere across the country amid tight security on Thursday, demanding justice for the victims of a 2019 crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators.
The marches commemorate the second anniversary of the deadly June 3 break-up by security forces of a major protest camp outside the military’s headquarters in Khartoum and others in Sudan.
The violence came shortly after the military overthrew long-time leader Omar Al Bashir amid a public uprising against his nearly three-decade rule.
Sudan is now on a fragile path to democracy and is ruled by a transitional military-civilian government that faces towering economic and security challenges.
Protest organisers say security forces killed at least 128 people during the dispersal and subsequent crackdown in June 2019, which was a turning point in the relationship between the generals and the protest movement that led the uprising against Al Bashir.
The crackdown also involved what activists describe as a campaign of rapes and sexual misconduct by troops ordered by the military to crush the pro-democracy movement.
Thursday’s demonstrations were called by the Sudanese Professionals’ Association, and the so-called Resistance Committees, which were instrumental in leading protests against Al Bashir.
Before Thursday’s protests, security forces closed off major roads and streets leading to the government and military headquarters in Khartoum.
Video footage later shared online showed protesters gathering outside the Cabinet headquarters and carrying Sudanese flags and posters of those killed in the uprising.
The marches came amid mounting frustration among activists who accuse the government of delaying and obstructing investigations and trials related to the crackdown.
“Today’s protest is another test for the commitment of the government to seek justice and protect the freedom of assembly,” said activist Nazik Awad. She added that families of the victims “are loosing faith in the ongoing investigation process”.
The protest organisers also renewed calls for an international investigation into the clampdown — calls that the army generals have repeatedly dismissed.
The government established an independent committee in 2019 to investigate the crackdown, but the panel kept missing its deadlines, angering the victims’ families and rights groups.
Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said in a statement late on Wednesday that his government had done its best to achieve justice. But he admitted that its “complicated ties” with security agencies overseen by the generals have “sometimes slowed down justice and delayed the submission of information” prosecutors need for their investigations.
“It is travesty of justice that two years since this senseless and unprovoked attack on unarmed protesters took place claiming dozens of lives, no investigation report has been published and no one responsible for the bloodshed has been held accountable. Instead those demanding justice have faced further attacks,” said Deprose Muchena, a regional director at Amnesty International.
Last month, two protesters were killed when troops opened fire on a demonstration in the capital at the end of Ramadan. The June 2019 disposal of the Khartoum protest camp also coincided with the end of Ramadan.
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More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Kanye%20West
%3Cp%3EYe%20%E2%80%94%20the%20rapper%20formerly%20known%20as%20Kanye%20West%20%E2%80%94%20has%20seen%20his%20net%20worth%20fall%20to%20%24400%20million%20in%20recent%20weeks.%20That%E2%80%99s%20a%20precipitous%20drop%20from%20Bloomberg%E2%80%99s%20estimates%20of%20%246.8%20billion%20at%20the%20end%20of%202021.%3Cbr%3EYe%E2%80%99s%20wealth%20plunged%20after%20business%20partners%2C%20including%20Adidas%2C%20severed%20ties%20with%20him%20on%20the%20back%20of%20anti-Semitic%20remarks%20earlier%20this%20year.%3Cbr%3EWest%E2%80%99s%20present%20net%20worth%20derives%20from%20cash%2C%20his%20music%2C%20real%20estate%20and%20a%20stake%20in%20former%20wife%20Kim%20Kardashian%E2%80%99s%20shapewear%20firm%2C%20Skims.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
FORSPOKEN
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Diablo%20IV
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The%20Legend%20of%20Zelda%3A%20Tears%20of%20The%20Kingdom
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Starfield
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The five pillars of Islam
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 1 (Rashford 36')
Liverpool 1 (Lallana 84')
Man of the match: Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Stage 2 results
1 Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal 04:18:18
2 Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep 00:00:02
3 Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 00:00:04
4 Diego Ulissi (ITA) UAE Team Emirates
5 Rick Zabel (GER) Israel Start-Up Nation
General Classification
1 Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal 07:47:19
2 Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep 00:00:12
3 Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 00:00:16
4 Nikolai Cherkasov (RUS) Gazprom-Rusvelo 00:00:17
5 Alexey Lutsensko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team 00:00:19
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
NBA FINALS SO FAR
(Toronto lead 3-2 in best-of-seven series)
Game 1 Raptors 118 Warriors 109
Game 2 Raptors 104 Warriors 109
Game 3 Warriors 109 Raptors 123
Game 4 Warriors 92 Raptors 105
Game 5 Raptors 105 Warriors 106
Game 6 Thursday, at Oakland
Game 7 Sunday, at Toronto (if needed)
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Hotel Silence
Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir
Pushkin Press
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5