Thousands protest military coup in Sudan as demonstrations continue

Thousands of Sudanese protesters took to the streets Tuesday to press demands for a return to civilian rule following a military coup last year, AFP correspondents said.

Sudan has been rocked by waves of demonstrations since the armed forces led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan grabbed power in October.

The takeover upended a transition to civilian rule that was launched after the 2019 ouster of Omar al-Bashir, following three decades of authoritarianism.

Demonstrators at Tuesday's rally in the capital Khartoum called for the military to "go back to the barracks", according to AFP correspondents.

They also carried posters of some of the 116 people that pro-democracy medics say have been killed in a crackdown on the anti-coup protests.

Some bore a portrait of Burhan with a cross sign and a caption telling him to "leave".

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

Civilian leaders dismissed the move as a "ruse", and pro-democracy protesters have maintained their rallying cry of "no negotiation, no partnership" with the military.

Economic hardship deepened in already impoverished Sudan following the coup which triggered cuts to crucial international aid.

Government employees, traders, labourers and medics among others have been increasingly critical of the rising cost of living and low wages.

In June, the UN said a record 15 million people in Sudan - around one-third of the population - were facing "acute food insecurity" and warned the situation was likely to get worse.