Sudanese Security Forces Fire Tear Gas, Arrest Dozens in ‘Bread Protests’

Protesters in Khartoum. Photo taken from social media
Protesters in Khartoum. Photo taken from social media
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Sudanese Security Forces Fire Tear Gas, Arrest Dozens in ‘Bread Protests’

Protesters in Khartoum. Photo taken from social media
Protesters in Khartoum. Photo taken from social media

Sudanese police fired tear gas to disperse a peaceful protest against soaring living costs in central Khartoum on Tuesday.

The Communist Party had called for the demonstration after bread prices more than doubled due to a jump in the cost of flour.

Police arrested dozens of political and media figures and activists, including Communist Party Central Committee member Sadiq Yusuf, and BBC correspondent Mohammed Mohamed Osman, who was released after hours of detention.

Information Minister Ahmed Mohamed Osman denied the use of force against demonstrators, and accused the opposition of causing unrest.

Osman told the German News Agency (dpa) that Tuesday’s protests were organized by members of opposition parties, noting that the government had agreed to solve the problem, but the opposition parties were still mobilizing citizens.

Demonstrations erupted in Khartoum and other cities in the country following the price increase.

A student was killed in el-Geneina, capital of West Darfur state, last week as opposition parties and activists announced their intention to go ahead with the protests against the rising bread prices.

The Sudanese Communist Party informed the security authorities of its intention to conduct a peaceful protest, in order to hand over a memorandum to the head of Khartoum state government against the soaring prices of goods and services.

Sudanese laws stipulate that the police must be informed of peaceful gatherings, to provide the needed protection, but police have used force to disperse the demo that witnessed the participation of over 30 opposition parties. 

The Communist Party issued a statement saying the police used force against the protesters, adding that such a treatment is a reflection of the government’s isolation.

The statement added that this behavior is tantamount to a system that lacks popular support and resorts to force.

Tuesday's protests, which lasted for hours in one of the largest streets in Khartoum, were unprecedented in terms of the number of participants which was estimated to be more than a thousand, according to observers and witnesses.

Demonstrators gathered at the "Martyrs' Garden" near the presidential palace. However, security authorities prevented them from gathering and reaching the protest area.

The protesters, led by Communist Party Secretary Mohammad Mokhtar al-Khatib and a number of other opposition leaders, then staged a demonstration at the "Republic Street", one of the largest avenues in Khartoum, and blocked traffic.

Police used tear gas to disperse the protesters who chanted slogans against the government and increase in princes. Men in civilian clothes, who were likely security services, arrested dozens of activists and politicians.

The country devalued its currency to 18 Sudanese pounds for one US dollar, from a rate of 6.7 pounds in 2017. It also cut wheat subsidies, causing a quick doubling of bread prices.



Lebanon’s President Reveals the Country’s Stance on Relations with Israel

 Lebanese President Joseph Aoun looks on during a meeting with Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun looks on during a meeting with Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP)
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Lebanon’s President Reveals the Country’s Stance on Relations with Israel

 Lebanese President Joseph Aoun looks on during a meeting with Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun looks on during a meeting with Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP)

Lebanon has no plans to have normal relations with Israel at the present time, and Beirut’s main aim is to reach a “state of no war” with its southern neighbor, the country’s president said Friday.

President Joseph Aoun’s comments came as the Trump administration is trying to expand the Abraham Accords signed in 2020 in which Israel signed historic pacts with United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

In May, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said during a visit to France that his country is holding indirect talks with Israel to prevent military activities along their border from going out of control. Talks about peace between Israel and Syria have increased following the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad from power in December.

Aoun added in comments released by his office that only the Lebanese state will have weapons in the future, and the decision on whether Lebanon would go to war or not would be for the Lebanese government.

Aoun’s comments were an apparent reference to the armed Hezbollah group that fought a 14-month war with Israel, during which it suffered major blows including the killing of some of its top political and military commanders.

Hezbollah says it has ended its armed presence near the border with Israel, but is refusing to disarm in the rest of Lebanon before Israel withdraws from five overlooking border points and ends its almost daily airstrikes on Lebanon.

Earlier this week, US envoy Tom Barrack met with Lebanese leaders in Beirut, saying he was satisfied with the Lebanese government’s response to a proposal to disarm Hezbollah.

Hezbollah’s weapons have been one of the principal sticking points since Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000. Since then, Hezbollah fought two wars with Israel, one in 2006, and the other starting a day after the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered the war in Gaza.

The Hezbollah-Israel war, which ended with a US-brokered ceasefire in November, left more than 4,000 people dead in Lebanon and caused destruction estimated at $11 billion. In Israel, 127 people, including 80 soldiers, were killed during the war.

“Peace is the state of no war and this is what is important for us in Lebanon at the present time,” Aoun was quoted as telling visitors on Friday. He added that “the matter of normalization (with Israel) is not included in Lebanon’s current foreign policy.”

Lebanon and Israel have been at a state of war since 1948.