Protester Shot Dead in Sudan Rallies after State of Emergency Lifted

Sudanese demonstrators pray before taking the streets in Khartoum on June 3, 2022 to demand justice for scores of pro-democracy protesters killed during the suppression of a 2019 sit-in against now ousted leader Omar al-Bashir. (AFP)
Sudanese demonstrators pray before taking the streets in Khartoum on June 3, 2022 to demand justice for scores of pro-democracy protesters killed during the suppression of a 2019 sit-in against now ousted leader Omar al-Bashir. (AFP)
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Protester Shot Dead in Sudan Rallies after State of Emergency Lifted

Sudanese demonstrators pray before taking the streets in Khartoum on June 3, 2022 to demand justice for scores of pro-democracy protesters killed during the suppression of a 2019 sit-in against now ousted leader Omar al-Bashir. (AFP)
Sudanese demonstrators pray before taking the streets in Khartoum on June 3, 2022 to demand justice for scores of pro-democracy protesters killed during the suppression of a 2019 sit-in against now ousted leader Omar al-Bashir. (AFP)

A protester died from a gunshot wound in the chest in Sudan's capital Khartoum on Friday, medics said, as demonstrators rallied across the country less than a week after military rulers lifted a state of emergency.

The protests marked the third anniversary of a deadly raid on a sit-in calling for civilian rule shortly after the overthrow of long-time leader Omar al-Bashir.

The military and civilian groups agreed to share power in the summer of 2019, but that arrangement was ended by a coup last October.

There have been frequent anti-military rallies ever since.

"Protests will continue until we win justice for our martyrs and democratic rule," said Osama Mohamed, a 24-year-old marching across the Nile from Khartoum in Omdurman, where protesters blocked a main intersection and faced tear gas from security forces.

Protesters blame security forces for killing about 130 people in the June 3, 2019, raid as they cleared a sit-in in central Khartoum, based on a toll calculated by medics. Authorities acknowledge 87 deaths.

A committee investigating the incident has paused its activity since the coup, a member told Reuters.

Protesters in Omdurman on Friday chanted "our martyrs haven't died, they are here with the revolutionaries". They carried photos and banners of protesters who died in the raid.

The Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors said the protester who died on Friday was killed as security forces used heavy gunfire against rallies in Khartoum's Sahafa district.

There was no immediate comment from police. Authorities have previously said they allow peaceful protests and casualties will be investigated.

Medics say 99 people have been killed in anti-coup protests.

United Nations and African Union-led efforts to broker political mediation have made little progress, with a new round of talks to begin next week.

Military rulers facing an economic crisis say they lifted the state of emergency as a trust-building measure.



US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
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US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)

The United States is deferring the removal of certain Lebanese citizens from the country, President Joe Biden said on Friday, citing humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon amid tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

The deferred designation, which lasts 18 months, allows Lebanese citizens to remain in the country with the right to work, according to a memorandum Biden sent to the Department of Homeland Security.

"Humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon have significantly deteriorated due to tensions between Hezbollah and Israel," Biden said in the memo.

"While I remain focused on de-escalating the situation and improving humanitarian conditions, many civilians remain in danger; therefore, I am directing the deferral of removal of certain Lebanese nationals who are present in the United States."

Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a "support front" with Palestinians shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel's military assault in Gaza.

The fighting in Lebanon has killed more than 100 civilians and more than 300 Hezbollah fighters, according to a Reuters tally, and led to levels of destruction in Lebanese border towns and villages not seen since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.

On the Israeli side, 10 Israeli civilians, a foreign agricultural worker and 20 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Tens of thousands have been evacuated from both sides of the border.