Sudan protester shot dead as coup anniversary looms

Security forces shot dead a protester in Sudan's capital on Sunday, medics said, two days ahead of the first anniversary of a military coup that derailed the country's transition to civilian rule.

The latest death - the first of a protester since August 31 - brings to 118 the number of demonstrators killed over the past year, according to the Central Committee of Sudan Doctors.

The demonstrator was killed "by a bullet fired by the security forces," the committee said.

#تنسيقية_لجان_مقاومة_الكلاكلات_وجنوب_الخرطوم تنعي " أسرة الشهيد الطفل (آدم عيسى) الذى ارتقت روحه الطاهرة إلى خالقها أثر رصاص قوات الإنقلابيين، وتقول إن إستشهاد الطفل "آدم" جريمة ضد الإنسانية . #السودان #راديو_دبنقا #SudanNews #Sudan https://t.co/N1saCNdgBS pic.twitter.com/9x1S22n4va

— Radio Dabanga (@RadioDabanga) October 23, 2022

لجنة أطباء السودان المركزية

عـــــاجل

ارتقــاء روح شهـــــيد

ارتقت قبل قليل روح شهيد لم يتم التأكد من بياناته بعد
إثر إصابته بطلق ناري في الصدر أطلقته قوات الانقلاب بعد مشاركته في تظاهرة اليوم بمدينة الخرطوم.

للشهيد الرحمة والمغفرة والخلود في الفردوس الأعلى من الجنة. pic.twitter.com/HiMjhGc143

— لجنة أطباء السودان المركزية CCSD’S (@SD_DOCTORS) October 23, 2022

Tuesday marks one year since the October 25 coup led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, a year marked by near-weekly anti-coup rallies and a crackdown on protests by the authorities.

The coup upended a transition to civilian rule that was launched after the 2019 ouster of strongman Omar al-Bashir, who ruled the northeast African country for three decades.

In July, Burhan pledged in a televised address to step aside and make way for Sudanese factions to agree on a civilian government.

However, civilian leaders dismissed his move as a "ruse".

Pro-democracy protesters have since held fast to their rallying cry of "no negotiation, no partnership" with the military, and have pledged a show of force for Tuesday's anniversary.

On Friday, thousands of people took to city streets across Sudan to demand a return to civilian rule in one of the world's poorest countries as it sinks even further into political and economic crisis.

Despite international mediators trying to get the army and civilian factions to negotiate, no end seems in sight to the impasse.

The economic situation is only getting worse, with three-digit inflation and a third of the country's 45 million people suffering from food shortages.